Alvin's Ghost
by twinrose84
Summary: Alvin, Simon and Theodore return from a day's rehearsal and stop by a random fortuneteller, who gives Simon and Theodore great fortunes, but gives Alvin a cryptic one. There's more to the story when Alvin realizes someone or something needs his help...
1. Chapter 1: Fortunes

_Author's Note: This little fanfiction story was written probably about three years ago (2007) as I was working on a novel and found myself rewatching the Chipmunk Adventure for the first time in years. I decided to take a break from my novel and ran with this idea to help get my creative gears working while switching back and forth. The end result came out a lot better than I thought it would. _

_Story summary: Alvin, Simon and Theodore return from a day's rehearsal and stop by a random fortuneteller, who gives Simon and Theodore great fortunes, but gives Alvin a cryptic one. Alvin can't shake what he thinks might be a very bad feeling, and as he hears sounds in the attic of his two story home, he's convinced someone (or something) is out to get him. But he realizes that someone needs his help._

_Characters are © to their respective creators. No one can touch Melina, though. She's my own creation. =)_

**Chapter 1: Fortunes**

"All right boys, let's take it from the top one more time, and then we'll break from the studio today." David Seville adjusted his black bow tie, dressed in a formal tuxedo and newly shined loafers. Alvin, Simon and Theodore stood in the recording booths ready for his cue. They were doing a cover recording of the song "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder, and all of them were really excited about doing it. Alvin had the lead vocal (as per usual) and all three of them joined in for the choral parts for what was an energetic finish to the normal recording day. When they finished, Dave and the staff greeted them warmly.

"You boys were great - I'm really proud of you. I'm going to be in the office until this evening, so can you get home all right by yourselves? I've left some of your allowance money in your office mail boxes, so pick them up before you leave. And Alvin...don't spend it all in one place."

"Why are you getting on my case about it?" Alvin said innocently. "After all, I wasn't the one who subscribed to that uber expensive bug convention last week." Alvin glared out the corner of his eyes at Simon, who rolled his own eyes.

"It was for a good cause." Simon noted duly, adjusting his glasses.

"Yeah, I call looking at dead bugs _really_ helpful to the environment."

"I meant in the sense that it was educational. There were a lot of rare species. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity."

"Those poor bugs..." Theodore noted sadly.

"Okay you three." Dave said sternly, running his hand through his hair, then kneeling to put his arms around the three of them. "I just want you to realize the value of money and not to waste it. I thought the venue Simon spent his money for was fine, but it was just too expensive - and he didn't ask me about it first. Just promise me that you boys will think a bit before you use your money, and don't be afraid to talk to me if you're ever in doubt. Okay?"

"Yes sir." They all said, before leaving the room.

***

"I still think that whole bug convention was a waste of money." Alvin said as he, Simon and Theodore made their way down the usual neighborhood, careful to travel a way they knew screaming fans wouldn't trek on their way home.

"I already got a lecture about it, Alvin. I don't need to hear it from you. I'm still paying Dave back in small increments of my allowance." Simon sighed.

"Yeah, but you usually never get in trouble. Not as much as me. I buy a new Rocket Skateboard 3000, that wasn't even that expensive, and Dave yells at me before I bring it in the door!"

"That's because the Rocket Skateboard 3000 had a high safety risk. And who's the one who skinned both knees, and broke it after taking it out on a 'test drive'?"

Alvin laughed nervously. "But it was still the most awesome test drive I've been on in a long time."

"I just spent my allowance on books and a few gumballs. You want one, Alvin?" Theodore pulled out a red gumball and handed it to Alvin, who took it willingly.

"Thanks, Theodore." Alvin said, plopping it into his mouth without a second thought.

"You want one too, Simon?"

Simon shook his head. "No, thanks. I'm trying to cut down on anything that might cause cavities."

"Oh." Theodore seemed disappointed, but pulled another gumball, blue, from his pocket, and placed it in his mouth, smiling.

Alvin found his eyes wandering to a nearby alleyway, and a sign caught his eye, which he read aloud. " 'Have your fortune told today for only $1.00. Super discount!' Hey guys, we should check it out!"

"No. You heard what Dave said about us not wasting money. Fortune telling is definitely one of the things he was talking about."

"And _why_ would it be a waste of money?" Alvin said smartly to Simon's comment. "It's a dollar, for crying out loud."

"A dollar too many! Fortune tellers aren't real."

"I wanna have my fortune told too. I don't think Dave would mind if we all did it. It would only be $3, but you don't have to get one Simon, if you don't want to." Theodore noted.

"My thoughts exactly, Theodore. If we just pay for ourselves, it's not much at all."

Alvin and Theodore started walking down the alleyway, while Simon lingered behind for a moment, sighing heavily as he followed them down the way.

***

Alvin and Theodore walked through the ragged, swing wooden door of the entrance to the fortune teller's business, Simon following not far behind as he waved away some smoke that had caught in his face. A flickering neon sign noting the business was open greeted them, as well as the strands of intricate black and gold beads lining the entrance before them.

"Enter well, young company. Melina has not had many visitors today, and you are in luck to take such a fine offer." A thickly accented, feminine voice emerged from the way beyond the beads. Theodore was startled by the sudden voice, taking refuge behind Alvin's back.

"Relax, Theodore. She can't hurt you." Alvin said, casually confident.

"I-I know, but I didn't know she was there."

"'This is stupid." Simon noted under his breath.

"Oh stupid, Melina is not, young one." The voice called out. "Melina comes from across the many seas, and knows all paths to the future."

Simon's lip closed promptly, and he wondered how the voice heard him if he barely spoke the words in more than a whisper. The three of them moved past the beads, and saw, sitting at a small table a young woman with decorative red and gold beads over her forehead and long, curly black hair that cascaded over her shoulders. Her skin was a shade of copper, and she wore many rings on her fingers and dressed in a silk, sleeveless dress with a tight bodice. She wore no shoes, and she lightly kicked her feet in excitement beneath the table. Alvin noticed her smile and found his heartbeat quickening slightly.

"She's beautiful!" Alvin said under his breath.

"Melina likes that you find her enchanting." She said, winking at Alvin, who found himself grinning.

"So, your name is Melina? How long have you been fortunetelling?" Simon asked, dubious.

"Indeed, young one. Melina has been fortunetelling for many years, since she was a small child. Melina's mother and mother before hers were fortunetellers, too."

"Why does she talk like that?" Theodore asked under his breath.

"Probably because it's part of the act." Simon noted.

"Well, I'm playing along." Alvin said.

"Me too, she seems really nice." Theodore grinned, and walked from behind Alvin to approach the fortune teller, taking a dollar from his pocket, and sliding it to her on the table.

"I want to have my fortune told...if that's okay." Theodore said shyly.

"Of course, Melina is happy to tell Theodore's fortune today." She took the dollar and placed it in a money jar not far from where they sat. It was nearly full with change and other dollar bills.

"H-how did you know my name?"

"Melina sees all. The doubtful one is called Simon, and the charming one is called Alvin. All three of you are brothers and are exceptional performers."

"Wow..."

"She probably just saw us on TV." Simon rolled his eyes.

"She called me charming." Alvin said, wriggling his eyebrows.

"Oh, brother." Simon watched as Melina took Theodore's small hand and traced his plams with a fingernail painted in dark green with a pink rose design. All of her fingernails were painted in the same pattern. She closed her eyes and seemed to chant something under her breath. A language that none of them could understand. When she opened her eyes again, she seemed to smile.

"And the spirits have spoken - You will find much to be happy about today, young Theodore. You will find a reward that brings you to your feet, within an equally sweet treat."

"Oh boy!' Theodore exclaimed cheerfully.

"That made no sense." Simon said, shaking his head.

"Would you like to try to see for yourself, young Simon? Melina cannot make a believer out of a skeptic, but I can show you the path of fate's way."

Simon looked at Alvin as Alvin nudged him forward. "Go on, Simon, or are you too scared to do it?"

"I'm not scared."

"Prove it." Alvin said, folding his arms across his chest.

Simon narrowed his brow. "Peer pressure doesn't become you, Alvin."

"Maybe not, but I know a scaredy cat when I see one."

Simon groaned, pulling a dollar from his pocket, and walking up as Theodore took a free lollipop from Melina and walked back over to Alvin. "Fine. I'll prove to you that it's a hoax and that I'm not a scaredy cat. Though I would have preferred to use my dollar on something more valuable."

Simon gave his dollar to Melina, and she performed the same ritual she had on Theodore, chanting something slightly different under her breath before opening her eyes and smiling.

"Your tendency towards achieving balance will bring great reward for you soon, young Simon. Use your mind well, and your time will come with the ring of a single bell."

Simon looked at her incredulously, but sighed. "Well, at least it's a good fortune. Thank you, Melina."

She frowned, her berry colored lips drawing together. "Melina thinks you still don't believe her."

"Unfortunately, I don't." Simon admitted honestly, but felt a tinge of guilt at the expression crossing her beautiful features.

"Well, Melina believes you shall see truth beyond the layers, and wishes young Simon well." She noted, giving him a lollipop.

"At least I'm not coming out of this empty handed." Simon noted, as Alvin pulled out his dollar, and handed it to Melina, taking Simon's place in the chair. Melina repeated the ritual, but seemed to take a sharp breath inward when she finished the reading.

"What is it, Miss Melina?" Alvin said, confused.

"Oh, Melina does not have good news for young Alvin. And Melina doesn't want to make him frown. You are sure you wish to hear it?" She placed her free hand under Alvin's chin, her eyes glistening in the dim light of the room with sadness.

"Sure, it can't be that bad. It's not like I did anything wrong...yet."

"Yet is right." Simon said rolling his eyes.

Melina sighed, removing her hand from his chin and exhaling as she spoke the words. "I see the shadows and several strings of red. And in my cold vision, I see young Alvin walking beside the dead."

"W-What?!" Alvin's face fell.

"Okay, that's the last straw; we're getting out of here. " Simon asserted. "Come on, Alvin."

"Wait a minute..." Alvin called out to Simon and Theodore but Simon dragged Theodore past the beads before he could have a word in edgewise.

"I am very sorry, young one. I wanted to have a good fortune to tell you."

Alvin frowned, but she gave Alvin a lollipop, and pat him on the head. "Perhaps, when we meet again, Melina should have something better to tell you."

"Judging from that fortune, that's probably not gonna happen. " Alvin thanked her for the lollipop before rushing out behind Simon and Theodore.


	2. Chapter 2: Fact in Fiction

**Chapter II: Fact in Fiction**

"Well, Alvin, it's not my fault that you're the one who wanted to see the fortune teller in the first place. As far as I'm concerned, you got what you paid for." Simon folded his arms across his chest and glared at Alvin, who seemed to match Simon's glare equivocally. Alvin had been in a foul mood since receiving his fortune from Melina earlier that evening. Mrs. Miller, their babysitter, cooked dinner in the kitchen as they waited for her to bring their plates accordingly. Dave hadn't returned home from work yet, so they all figured it would be a late night for him.

"Easy for you to say! You got a great fortune."

"I got a great one too!"

"Way to rub it in, Theodore." Alvin rolled his eyes and adjusted the cap on his head.

"Sorry." Theodore frowned and traced his left foot in a circular motion, under the table.

"Don't blame Theodore in all this. You're taking it far too superstitiously - fortunes _aren't real_. And you called _me_ the scaredy cat."

"I'm not scared! But Melina wouldn't say something like that if it wasn't something to it. I mean...if she wanted to be mean, why did she give us all lollipops? And she apologized to me like a billion times afterward."

"I haven't figured that out yet." Simon said, seeming to note Alvin had a point. "But still, we're not going back there again. Knowing her, she probably gave you that fortune just to bring you back - then you'd have to pay her more."

"I wanna see Melina again." Theodore said. "And she did ask Alvin if he wanted to hear it before she said it, so it's not like she wanted to hurt his feelings."

"Oh, you two are way too gullible." Simon sighed, placing a hand on his forehead. Mrs. Miller came in that moment, with all her usual smiles.

"Hello boys, I've made your favorite chicken noodle soup tonight. Eat it all up, along with your vegetables now. I've cooked peas and green beans, and I have some broccoli with cheese too! Once you eat it all up, then you can have some ice cream for dessert."

"Can we just skip the vegetables and go straight to ice cream after the soup?" Alvin asked, a cross expression on his face at the mention of green beans.

"I'll eat your share, Alvin, if you want!" Theodore grinned.

"Oh no, Alvin, you have to eat it all. You're a growing boy." She pat his head a few times. "You must eat every last bit, or else you're not getting any ice cream. And don't think about giving your share to Theodore. He'll want seconds and thirds, I know." She made the latter note with a light laugh. Alvin groaned under his breath.

***

"Man, did Mrs. Miller know how much green beans she put on my plate? I had to eat the whole thing and now I feel sick. Not even the ice cream took the taste out of my mouth. Bleh." Alvin lay on his bed, reading a magazine instead of doing his homework, thinking he'd do it later since it wasn't due for another few days. Simon was at his desk working on a few math problems, while Theodore was on his own bed trying to think of a story to come up with for their English assignment.

"I think Mrs. Miller was trying to prove a point to you, Alvin." Simon said as he caught a break between his thoughts.

"I figured that." Alvin held his stomach with one hand. "I hate vegetables."

"I love them!"

"Yeah, you love everything about food, Theodore." Simon noted, rolling his eyes.

"I probably should have just gave my share to Theodore anyway." Alvin noted. "Too bad Miss Miller was watching the whole time. She would have seen me if I didn't eat them. Ugh. I hope we have something different for dinner tomorrow. How about pizza? That would be nice."

"I would love pizza!" Theodore said excitedly.

"Fine, we should probably ask Dave tomorrow if we can. Though Miss Miller will probably say she will try making the pizza herself. And Dave will likely say yes to that, versus takeout, since she's babysitting us tomorrow evening."

"Okay, trust me, I usually like Miss Miller's cooking, but she does NOT make good pizza." Alvin said matter-of-factly. "It doesn't have the same gooey cheese or pepperoni with just a little zest. Even the slices aren't as big. I need my Guido's Pizza!"

"Guido's does have the best pizza in town, but it's usually packing in calories. And ever since Miss Miller went on her health diet, she's been insisting that we get on board too. She'll probably say no to Guido's knowing that, but if we're going to convince her to get take out, we'll have to suggest something else."

"But you don't understand!" Alvin grabbed Simon by the collar, unexpectedly because Simon had turned back to his work and didn't notice Alvin jumping from his bed. "I need Guido's. We haven't had it in a long time. I mean, what other pizza place could beat Guido's?! Nobody, that's who!"

"All right, Alvin." Simon shoved Alvin away from him and adjusted his glasses. "Why don't we go through the menu tomorrow and tabulate the smallest number of calories we can get from a meal at Guido's, and then show Miss Miller before tomorrow evening when she comes by again?"

"Sure, but how do we do that?"

"There's a little something called the _internet_. I think you should use it more often _before_ you ask questions."

"I _know_ what the internet is, Simon."

"Yeah, when it comes to playing games and reading comics. But you could use it for a lot more than that. Do you though? I don't think so."

"I'm really tired, you guys, so I think I'm going to sleep. Night Simon, Night Alvin." Theodore quipped, breaking the argument between Alvin and Simon. They both sighed.

"Night, Theodore." They said simultaneously.

***

The next morning, Alvin, Simon and Theodore all had the usual meal for breakfast. It was just their choice of cereal, sunny side up eggs, and toast. They had their preferences, but usually Theodore had the bigger share of the meal.

As Theodore poured his usual Fruity O's, he saw something fall out of the bottom of the box and into the bowl.

"I wonder what this is...oh my gosh!"

"What is it, Theodore?" Simon noted, while buttering his toast.

"I won! I really won! A hundred dollars! They've had this promotional contest on Fruity O's all month and it's almost over. Third place, you get a hundred dollars! I don't believe it!"

"You're kidding me." Alvin looked over Theodore's shoulder at the slip of paper, an official document that noted a winning ticket towards a check good for $100.

"Wow, congrats Theodore. What are you going to use it on?" Simon looked over Theodore's other shoulder at the ticket.

"I don't know yet, but I have to call the number on this, and then I can go to the place to get the prize. It's a good thing we're taking the limo to the recording studio - we can go by there on the way!" Theodore left the room quickly to call the number on the ticket.

"He sure started off this morning lucky..." Alvin started, but then his face fell at the recognition. "Wait a minute...what was it that Melina said...something about finding a treat out of something sweet? She knew this was gonna happen!" Alvin said, grabbing Simon by the collar. "The fortune came true!"

"You do know the odds of that happening are a gazillion to one, right?" Simon duly noted.

"Actually, it's 1 in 500,000! That's what it said on the back of the box!" Theodore called out from the other room, returning with his cell phone and hanging up after the automated prize claim call was complete. Simon shook his head.

"I'm not talking about the odds of you winning the contest, Theodore. At least, that's more tangible. I'm talking about Melina actually predicting your chances of winning something from a cereal box."

Theodore thought about it for a moment, looked at Alvin's expression and a lightbulb seemed to go off in his head. "Oh my gosh! Melina was right!"

"See what I mean?" Alvin sighed. "I'm in trouble!"

"Just because it happened to Theodore doesn't mean anything will happen to either of us, Alvin. You're being unreasonable."

"Morning boys, are you guys ready to go to the studio?" Dave walked in with a dress shirt and green straight legged pants, his brown shoes clattering on the kitchen tiles. "I'm sorry I came back so late last night - I didn't even have a chance to tell you good night."

"Dave, look, I won a contest!" Theodore held up his winning ticket as Dave scooped him up into his arms.

"That's great, Theodore! So what did you win?"

" A hundred dollars! Can I go pick it up before we go to the studio?"

"Sure! We can all go together."

Alvin sighed and left the room, heading to the front door.

"What's wrong with Alvin?" Dave asked.

"He just woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, Dave." Simon noted, shaking his head as they all left for the limo, which waited for them outside the house.

***

In the studio, Alvin, Simon and Theodore went through another song recording, strong and poised as usual. That afternoon, Dave suggested that they spend their time writing some new material, so the three of them were in the writing room trying to think of things to write about.

"How about...fruits, or chocolate, or marshmallows?"

"How about we do something that doesn't involve _food_, Theodore?" Alvin shook his head.

"Oh...sorry, but that's the only thing I can think of. It's already past lunchtime and we haven't eaten anything."

"Well, maybe we should take a break. I can't think of anything either on an empty stomach." Alvin noted, and jumped from his chair to walk into the hallway. On his way to Dave's office, he nearly ran into someone turning the corner. He realized exactly who it was when he blinked a few times.

"Brittany?!"

"Oh, it's just you, Alvin." Brittany, one of the Chipettes, looked at him with an annoyed expression. "You're not using the studio right now, are you?"

"Actually, I'm using Set B right now - Simon, Theodore and I are using it to write some new songs. You can use the main studio, I guess, since _we_ aren't." He folded his arms and gave her a smug expression.

"Fine. Just don't let the door hit you on your way out. Although I think if something can knock some manners into your head, then it would be well worth it!" She strolled past Alvin non chalantly, as he saw Eleanor and Jeanette walking out of one of the offices - probably from one of their managers.

"Sorry, Alvin. Brittany's in a bad mood." Eleanor said, clasping her hands behind her back and looking down to the ground, a little embarrassed.

"I kind of had that impression. Nothing more than usual, I guess. What are you guys doing here?"

"Recording a few songs, actually." Jeanette cleaned her glasses with a towelette before placing them back on her eyes. "We're just waiting for our manager to give us clearance. Brittany wants to go ahead and start recording so we can go ahead and get it done, though."

"Do you know if Dave's anywhere around here?"

"I think he's still in his office a few doors down. Why?"

"Well, we're thinking about ordering pizza, since we're working on empty stomachs."

"Ooh! Jeanette, we should get some pizza too! I'm starving." Eleanor quipped.

"Well, can you ask Dave if he can provide pizza for all of us, Alvin? It'd be awesome if you could."

"I guess so. What place you wanna order from?"

"Guido's definitely!" Eleanor said enthusiastically.

Alvin smiled mischievously. "Now you're talking!"

***

It wasn't long before Dave had the pizzas ready for both the Chipmunks and Chipettes, as they all met in one of the board rooms to eat. Dave didn't object, and thought it would be a good chance that the Chipmunks and Chipettes could meet after some time.

"Well, looks like we're having this meal a little early - and we didn't even have to do any calorie counting, Simon." Alvin said as he bit off a piece of pepperoni and sausage pizza.

"You love to rub it in, don't you Alvin?"

"You're not complaining, are you?"

"No."

"Then don't worry about it."

"Just so you'll know, even if you finish writing the song you're working on, Alvin - we'll be using the recording studio for the rest of the day. So you'll have to plan your schedule around us!" Brittany noted, matter of factly as she finished a bit of cheese pizza.

"Fine by me. Because our next single is going to be epic, whether you like it or not." Alvin challenged.

"Oh yeah?!"

"Yeah!"

"Cut it out, you guys." Theodore noted as he bit off a piece of pizza.

"Actually, I did have an idea in mind for a song that I wanted to run by Dave, but I haven't seen him since he brought in pizza." Simon noted. "I guess if he likes it and runs it by the panel, we can start recording it whenever."

"Sure, as if he'll like your idea more than mine." Alvin boasted. "I already have an idea in mind for the music video too. Lots of lights, crazy artwork, some great guitars, and the works."

"That sounds like overkill - I don't even have to hear the song to figure out how bad of an idea that is."

Alvin gave Brittany a look out of the corner of his eyes, but couldn't speak as a large piece of pizza was stuffed in his mouth.

A little bit after they ate, Alvin and Theodore returned to Set B to continue writing some ideas down. Alvin played a few notes on the guitar in the room, playing around with the melody in his mind and singing a few bars, but realized it wasn't coming together.

"Something's definitely missing here. I was sure it sounded great in my head, but I don't know what it is."

"What are you trying to do, Alvin?"

"I think seeing Melina yesterday made me want to record a song about fortune. I know it's a weird inspiration, but still...I wanna run with it." Alvin cleared his throat and began to sing.

"_As fortune smiles, she's watchin' you..._" He paused. "I can't come up with the next line though."

"That's a great opening! You should go with it."

"I never thought I'd say this, but thanks Theodore." Alvin smiled. "So what was Simon's idea?"

"I don't know, he kinda just went off to talk to Dave. He didn't share it with me. Come to think of it, he's been gone a while..."

"Boys, I have great news!" They heard Dave's voice down the hall, and he entered the doorway with Simon. "We just met with the panel and we can go ahead with the recording of the next single!"

"Really? That fast? What song did they choose? One of the archived ones? Or a cover?" Alvin asked.

"No, actually Simon came up with a great song he introduced in our meeting. They want us to start recording it."

"What?!" Alvin and Theodore said simultaneously, as they looked to Simon.

"Don't look at me; the idea kinda just popped into my head. I told them we haven't even had a chance to rehearse it yet, but they said if it's a little rugged, we'll be okay. They want us to start practicing it now."

"I'll get back to the panel and let them know you're practicing - but this is great news. I'm surprised they green lit something so soon!" Dave marched back into the hallway.

"Talk about a streak of good luck." Simon noted. "It usually takes them days, even weeks to get a project approved and agreed upon."

"No kidding, and usually they want us to have everything worked out in advance. What the heck is going on?" Alvin said, but recanted as he thought about the news. "Oh no..."

"What's wrong, Alvin?" Theodore asked as Alvin turned a shade paler than usual.

"Don't tell me that you think..." Simon began, but Alvin cut him off frantically.

"Don't you see - everything Melina predicted in your fortunes...it's all coming true!"


	3. Chapter 3: Noise

_Author's note: The song featured in this part of the story is 100% my own composition - and it's only in part in this particular chapter since it's beginning in medias res: song featured prominently is called "Song to Fly". When the rest of this story is posted, I'll post the complete set of lyrics. There are a few songs featured that I've written in the course of this story, and they'll be printed in full at the end. I hope you enjoy._

**Chapter 3: Noise**

"Come on, Alvin, you really don't believe this has anything to do with Melina's fortune, do you?"

"Of course it does! And if it happened to you two, then it's _definitely _going to happen to me." Alvin pointed out, his expression worried.

"But I thought Melina's fortune said something about a bell ringing when Simon got his bright idea?" Theodore said. "That's not the same, is it?"

"Well...this is probably just coincidence, but the phone did ring from the head project manager downtown - when he heard the idea, he was very enthusiastic. Said it would be very good since it fits right in with what's popular with music right now. Matter of fact, I think that's the reason why they rushed it."

"That's not coincidence!" Alvin shouted, exasperated, sinking down in his chair.

"Alvin, you're being ridiculous." Simon noted.

"But you gotta admit, it's really weird how all of this is going on."

"Well then, you tell me, Theodore - what do you think it is?"

"I-I don't really know..." Theodore trailed off, looking down to the floor.

"Look, why don't we just focus on practicing the song and talk about this later? Besides, we've gotta finish recording a demo before the end of the day. Dave already says he wants your voice for it, Alvin. And I think you can do it."

"I guess we should then...so much for my idea." Alvin said, picking up his guitar and beginning to strum it as Simon showed them the lyrics and the melody he'd penned.

***

"_...I don't wanna be anywhere else,_

_but it tears me apart from you._

_I can't play this game for life_

_If it's just between us two._

_Tryin' to find somewhere to be_

_Other than in this cage_

_That's why I want you to see me_

_Lighting up the stage!_

_I will go on, and set the day_

_Playin' my own way -_

_I feel the fire lighting up my heart_

_Playin' what I wanna say!_

_Don't you go on, tellin' me not to try_

_I know that I can get by_

_Cause there's nothing tearin' me apart_

_That's why it's my song - my song to fly._" ***

As the recording ended, Alvin, Simon and Theodore wrapped up the session.

"That sounded great, boys! We'll see what the studio says later about the demo. I'll have to make sure the recording checks out and I'll send it out before I leave for the evening. I have the limo already outside waiting to take you home . I don't want you three walking out while its dark. The recording session lasted much longer than I expected, with the Chipettes using the same studio." Dave seemed exhausted, but excited about the opportunity.

As Alvin, Simon, and Theodore climbed into the limo, Simon let out the breath he'd been holding for a little while.

"What a day. That must have been the quickest recording session I've ever been through."

"No kidding. I'm exhausted. And hungry too." Theodore rubbed his stomach gently.

"Even with all the pizza you ate earlier, you're still hungry?"

"Well, yeah, aren't you too?"

"Not really. How about you, Alvin?"

Alvin looked over the passing buildings and city lights as they whirled by in streams of color, and in one part of his mind, he thought about incorporating it into the song that he was trying to pen. In another, he was wondering what Melina's fortune had to do with him.

"_Alvin!_" Simon's shout broke him from his thoughts.

"What?"

"Don't tell me you're still worrying about Melina's fortune." Simon said sharply.

"I can't help it! If you were the one who got a bad fortune and somehow everyone else around you had good ones that came true, what would _you_ do?"

"I wouldn't be lamenting it, because the probability of it happening is very slim."

"Yeah, you _would_ because you think about things like _probability_. Meanwhile, in the real world - it's _freaky_! Come on, Theodore, help me out. There's no way you can't tell me something weird's going on."

"Maybe...but I don't know, Alvin. If it was going to happen, it would have happened by now, right?"

"I don't know. And Simon, you've written better songs with your eyes_ closed_."

"Come on, it's not bad. We just have to record it through the whole way. We only did a partial demo. I think we did fine considering it was last minute."

"I know my song could've came out better...if only I had the chance."

"What song?" Simon asked, puzzled.

"You should have heard it, Simon. Alvin sounded really good."

"It's still in the works. I don't get it. I don't get blocked this much when I'm writing usually."

"Maybe you're just having an off-day." Theodore noted to Alvin, while Simon groaned.

"More like he's having an off-day because he's worrying about something that will _never happen_."

"_Fine_. Be that way." Alvin noted, and didn't say anything the rest of the way home.

***

The little wind up clock on his night stand read 2:30, and he knew that everyone was already asleep. Even Simon had his usual, though occasional snore, but even on his best nights, Alvin slept through it.

"I've gotta stop worrying about this. Theodore was right, if nothing's happened by now, then maybe nothing will. Maybe Simon was right too...but there's no way I'm telling him that!"

Alvin settled down, pressing the side of his face into the pillow when he suddenly heard a scratching noise from above him.

"What was that...?" Alvin hid his face beneath the covers, looking upward towards the ceiling. The scratching sound started subdued, but started gaining momentum.

"Simon, Simon, wake up! You can't tell me that you can't hear that!" Alvin tried to wake Simon, but Alvin had to duck to keep Simon from hitting him in his sleep.

"Okay...there's no getting Simon up when he's sleeping. And Theodore could wake the dead running away from a noise like that. Okay, Alvin, you've got to figure out where it's coming from. Easier said than done though...heh heh..."

Alvin opened the door slightly ajar and walked through the hallway to the direction of the sound. He could tell it was more or less from the attic, but he didn't know where it was coming from, the sound kept moving around frantically, scratching and something of a low groan.

"Okay...that definitely doesn't sound good." Alvin found the path to the attic, slowly walking up the stairs as if to not make a lot of noise going up as he did. At one point he bristled at the sound of a creaking step - then realized it was only of his own doing, and sighed before starting up the stairs again.

He opened the attic door, and saw nothing but the usual windows and arrangement of old furniture and boxes around. Walking steadily in bedroom slippers, he searched for a nearby flashlight, and found one - but dimly lit the way. The usual pull lamp in the attic wasn't working for some reason, and Alvin thought the bulb had blown - they hadn't been up there in a little while.

"I should've just brought one from my room. Note to self: never leave into a dark area without a good flashlight. Every good adventurer and monster specialist needs one."

A creak sent a bristle up Alvin's spine, and he shined the light over to the direction he heard the sound, but saw nothing but a bunch of old drapes folded in the corner.

"Ugh, at least that scratching noise is gone." But as soon as Alvin noted it, the scratching rang loudly in his ears, and at a furious intensity that seemed to be approaching him from behind.

He turned, just in time to see a shadow darting among the crates, and toward him at a furious speed, causing him to drop the flashlight, as it rolled over the wooden floor.

"Whoa!"

***

Simon and Theodore were awakened by what sounded like Alvin yelling, startling them both awake.

"Alvin, for the last time, go back to sleep. It was probably just a nightmare - like you haven't had your share already. I mean with the mummy, the werewolves, Dracula, you've gotta come up with something more original..."

"Simon, I don't think he's here..." Theodore looked over at Alvin's empty bed, upturned sheets and missing bedroom shoes.

Simon put on his glasses and found himself able to focus, turning on the bedside lamp.

"Where the heck did he go?"

"I don't know, but it sounded like his voice came from the attic or the roof."

"I hope you're joking."

"Alvin, you really need to stop watching monster movies before bedtime...we've been over this a million times..." Dave came into the the room while rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He was dressed in his usual striped pajamas and had his dark hair tousled, though not as bad as it usually looked when he was startled awake by a nightmare Alvin had. But when he looked at Simon and Theodore, he realized Alvin was missing.

"Okay you two, what's going on?" Dave said sternly.

"We don't know, we just woke up." Simon explained. "We thought we heard Alvin's voice from the attic, or the roof."

"What's Alvin doing at this hour? It's almost 3:00 in the morning!" Dave grumbled, but made his way to the attic. Theodore and Simon looked at each other confused, but followed Dave to the attic.

"Alvin, I hope you have a perfectly good explanation for being up here so late, and for not even turning a light on, either..." Dave tried the switch to the attic, but found it was dead.

"That's strange, I'm sure that I just replaced this bulb - it must be shorting out. This house has been around for so many years, it's due for rewiring." Dave sighed, but shook his head of the tangent. "Alvin? Are you up here?"

The room was eerily quiet - almost as if no one had stepped into it for a long time.

"Alvin? Come on, if you're up here and you're hiding, this isn't funny. Whoa!" Dave found himself slipping on something underneath his feet in the darkness, and went tumbling to the floor, just as Simon and Theodore reached the top of the staircase.

"Dave, are you okay?" Theodore was the first one to reach him, helping him to sit up on the wooden floor.

"I'm fine, Theodore. I just tripped on something. It's hard to see in here when the light's not working." Dave looked to see what he tripped on, and grasped it in his hands. "But at least I did find the flashlight. Wait a minute...it's warm. That means it was just used not long ago. Alvin must have been up here. I don't understand why he isn't answering me."

"Well, I think this is also proof he was up here." Simon pulled what seemed to be Alvin's bedroom shoes from a nearby corner of crates.

Dave rose to his feet. "I'm going to check outside and see if he might be out there. You two stay in the house - and if anything's wrong, or if you see Alvin, you let me know the minute it happens, understand?"

"Yes, sir." Simon and Theodore said in unison, as he walked out of the room.

"Well, if Alvin wanted to be in trouble, he's certainly in it right now. _Big_ trouble." Simon noted bluntly.

"I don't know, Simon. I'm worried. What if Melina was right? What if Alvin's really..." Theodore made an audible gulp, his eyes widening at the fears his mind was running through. His biggest fear involved Alvin being eaten by a big shadow monster, and Simon could read Theodore's expression to know exactly what he was thinking.

"Not you _too_, Theodore." Simon groaned.

"Think about it, though. I won my hundred dollars this morning, you had your big idea for a song this afternoon, and now Alvin goes missing at night. It happened in almost the same day."

"Well...It does seem strange that it happened in the same window of 24 hours, but I think Alvin might be perpetuating some of this stuff on himself."

"Per-what?"

Simon shook his head. "I _mean_ that Alvin has an active imagination, and he might just be overdoing it! Wherever he is, he'd better get back here soon - but I don't think Dave will be too happy about it either way."

***

Alvin felt a cold breeze blow against his face, stirring him awake. His head ached a little and he felt annoyed just before opening his eyes.

"Last time I felt like this, Theodore tried to throw a toy truck at a box, missed, and hit _me_ in the head instead! Oww..."

"Alvin! Alvin, where are you?!"

Alvin's eyes snapped open. "Dave? I wonder why he's calling me? Last thing I remember was being in the attic, searching what whatever that sound was...and then that shadow...wait just a minute." His brow furrowed, and he began to look around his surroundings. But when he realized where he was, he let out a gasp.

"H-how the heck did I get on the roof?!"

"Alvin?!"

"Dave! _Help_!" Alvin grabbed onto the closest corner of the roof, hoping he wouldn't fall. He looked down to where the other angles of the rest of the roof were, and wondered how he managed to get where he was. He wasn't near any of the windows, and the slope of the roof was too steep to climb. Not only that, he realized that he was missing his bedroom shoes.

He opened his eyes long enough to see Dave searching frantically in the front yard.

"Up here!" Alvin shouted, and Dave turned around and looked upward.

"Alvin, what are you _doing_ there?!"

"You know, I'd really like to tell you, but it's kind of impossible because I don't have any idea how I got up here or how to get down. Well, I could think of one way down, but I don't think I wanna go that way. Whoa!" Alvin felt his grip starting to slip.

"Hang on, I'm coming!" Dave shouted, but gasped as Alvin's grip went loose and he started sliding down the tiles. He ran just in time to hold out his hands as Alvin fell straight, like a rock, into his torso. Both of them hit the ground, and Alvin stirred first, shaking his head.

"Are you okay, Dave?"

Dave opened his eyes and coughed a little, sighing in exasperation, but returning to a firm voice as he sat up and lifted Alvin gently by the shoulders. "Out of breath, but fine. You're lucky that ended where it could have been something _much_ worse. Now we're going inside and you're going to tell me _exactly_ what happened."

"That's what I'd like to figure out." Alvin noted, prompting a confused expression on Dave's face.


	4. Chapter 4: Deja Vu

**Chapter 4: Deja Vu**

"You've gotta believe me, Dave!" Alvin gripped Dave's collar as Dave rolled his eyes while sitting near Alvin's bedside in the Chipmunks' room. Simon had already taken off his glasses, but looked annoyed as he tried to settle in for the night. Theodore looked at Dave and Alvin from beneath his covers, which were pulled up to his tiny chin.

"Maybe it's Dracula, the Wolfman, the Boogieman, Mr. Sandman, maybe Freddy Krueger? And it's all after Simon and Theodore had their fortunes come true...!"

"Alvin, slow down." Dave scolded, but lightly. "Now, what's this about a fortune?"

"Well, you see, we went to see a fortune teller and...."

"Way to pull _us_ in the whole argument, Alvin." Simon noted, sighing loudly.

"That's what this is about - a fortune teller?" Dave shook his head. "Alvin, fortunes aren't real, no matter whether they're good or bad. Many have their fortunes told everyday, by many different people claiming to know the future. Usually the ones that do come true are just by chance."

"That's what I told him. Somehow he got it in his mind that just because he got a bad fortune, he thinks the world's gonna end." Simon pointed out.

"Oh yeah? Every single one of the fortunes she told us came true - you just won't admit it, Simon. Well, almost every single one..." Alvin noted.

"You can't believe everything you read or hear from other people, Alvin. Just because someone says something will happen doesn't mean it will happen or that it can't be changed." Dave put a hand on Alvin's head, reassuringly.

"You don't believe me at all, do you? I'm telling the truth!"

Dave sighed. "We'll talk about this more tomorrow since it's late and I know you boys have school in the morning. I want to sit down with all three of you to talk about this when I get back home. And you are _not_ to go back to the fortune teller you went to, _understood_?"

"Yes, sir." Alvin, Simon, and Theodore said in unison as Dave stood up approaching the door. His voice had been stern, but he didn't mean it to come out as harsh as it did. He sighed and looked behind his back as he opened the door.

"Good night, boys."

"Night Dave." They said as he shut the door.

***

During lunch at school the next day, The Chipmunks and Chipettes found themselves sitting across from each other in the cafeteria. Brittany saw that Alvin was playing around with his spaghetti and meatballs, seemingly distracted by something. She grinned slyly and placed a hand under her chin as she gazed into his downcast, but somewhat annoyed, eyes.

"I guess that song you wrote really didn't hit its mark, did it, Alvin? You should learn not to put your size 7 shoes into your size 1 mouth."

"For your information, _Brittany_ - I'm still working on it. Just you wait - it's going to be bigger than the single you recorded yesterday, for sure. By a long shot."

"You wanna bet on it, buster?" Brittany jumped from her seat, placing one foot on the table and leering down at him with a confident, triumphant expression.

"You bet I will! And you're betting on my song- that is, the song that _I wrote_ - just remember that!"

"You're on! And know that I wrote our latest single, _all by myself_ too!"

Jeanette sighed, as Alvin and Brittany continued to argue. "The whole two tables over that way are looking at us weirdly. And I get the feeling its not because of who _we are_, but because of those two."

"Those two need a room all to themselves. But something tells me that wouldn't be such a good idea. It would probably be the end of the modern world as we know it." Simon sighed, suddenly imagining Alvin and Brittany as cave dwellers, arguing back and forth while waving clubs in the air. He grimaced at the thought and seemed to pop the thought bubble over his mind with a single finger.

"I wish they wouldn't fight so much." Theodore noted, stuffing a piece of a chicken leg in his mouth, but frowned as he chewed it.

"Me neither, Theodore." Eleanor noted. "But maybe we can think of this as a good thing - it's friendly competition. We haven't released singles against each other in a long time."

"Well...who won last time?" Simon asked Eleanor.

"Don't mention it." she said under her breath. "Brittany's still mad about it. You do it and she'll start declaring war on you - at least right now it's more like battle mode. We've seen her declare war - it's not pretty."

Simon's face twisted in a look of discomfort, and he laughed nervously. "I'll...keep that in mind."

"Simon, is it true you penned the latest single for the Chipmunks?" Eleanor asked.

Simon nodded affirmatively. "I still feel weird about it because they usually don't choose my songs. And not so suddenly, either."

"But that's great! It means you're getting more opportunity."

"Maybe...but Alvin seems convinced it was a fluke. Then again, he did tell me I've written better songs with my eyes closed - I don't know whether to take that as a compliment or not."

"I think Alvin meant that you've written better stuff that hasn't been discovered yet by the producers, Simon." Theodore noted.

"If he really meant that, I'd agree with him, not to take on his ego or anything. But still - it's the decision of the committee. I just hope we're not taking two steps back with the new song."

"I heard you guys recording in the studio late yesterday. I thought it sounded great. I mean...you know, for what you guys usually do." Jeanette blushed, a little fearful that Brittany would overhear her giving compliments to their rival group, and in Brittany's mind, that was definitely not in her agenda.

"Thank you, Jeanette. Now I think we need to pull these two away from each other before the vice principals start wondering what's going on."

***

"Are you sure you're okay after what happened last night, Alvin? That must have been really scary..."

Alvin laughed nervously as the brothers made their way home that afternoon following school. "I'm fine, Theodore. I'm worried about whatever that shadow was in the attic, and how I even got on the roof in the first place. I don't remember anything between that time - I don't even think I heard you guys in the attic, which creeps me out. Are you sure neither of you heard the scratching sounds in the attic?"

"I didn't hear anything at all."

"Neither did I. Are you sure you didn't just dream it?" Simon noted, dubious.

"I'm _very_ sure. And I know for a fact I didn't get up to the roof by myself. There's no way I could have climbed up on the tiles from the window - it's too steep. Not to mention that I, in my right mind, would never try something like that by myself. I mean, I'm no scaredy cat, but I know when to say no."

"I don't know; you've given us many times to doubt when you're in your right mind, Alvin."

"Like when? Name one! I bet you can't." Alvin folded his arms and gave Simon a look out the corner of his eyes.

"I can name more than a few. How about that time you filled the bathtub and shower head with garlic because you were convinced that there was a vampire hiding not just somewhere in the bathroom, but in your toothbrush?! We ALL ended up smelling weird for a week. And how about the time you thought it was a good idea to switch the sugar with the salt because you thought imps would try to switch them when we weren't looking? Or how about the time..."

"Okay, okay. I get your point. But seriously guys, there's something fishy going on. Don't you see - the shadow part of my fortune already came true." Alvin gulped. "I don't think I wanna find out what the rest of it is. So we've gotta look into it before it happens."

"I really think you're reading too much into this. Like Dave said, it's not like you can't change a fortune, even if it were real."

"Actually, Simon, you just gave me an idea." Alvin started running ahead along the street.

"Why do I get the feeling I don't like where this is going?" Simon noted as he and Theodore ran after Alvin.

***

"Oh no we are not." Simon said sternly. "We are _not_ going back in there. Furthermore, _I am not going_ _back in there_."

"Come _on_, Simon!" Alvin pulled on his arm, but Simon wouldn't budge and yanked his arm away.

"Dave told us specifically that we weren't allowed to visit any kind of fortune teller, again!"

"Actually, Dave said we weren't allowed to visit the same fortune teller, not any." Theodore corrected.

"Meaning we definitely can't see Melina again. So, I'd like to know what are you two doing standing right in front of the_ same_ alley that we were on just the _day before yesterday_?!"

"We're going to see Melina, of course. Besides, it's not like Dave knows who she is. What he doesn't know won't hurt him." Alvin raised his eyebrows.

"_Alvin!_ Okay, let me put this in terms that even you can understand. Yesterday, Theodore won $100 dollars. I, for no reason, had one of my songs signed and approved by the panel to be our next single. You nearly fell off the roof, which I would normally attribute to your clumsiness, except that you thought you heard something in the attic that freaked you out. Which leads me to one conclusion."

"That you finally believe me about our fortunes came true?"

"No...that Melina might have had something to do with everything that's been happening! She's the number one suspect on my mental dossier list. Even if we weren't restricted from going there, I would not go back there willingly after everything that happened."

"And how exactly can you prove that she had something to do with it, Sherlock?" Alvin noted slyly to Simon.

"Well...I haven't deduced that far, but it would be too dangerous to engage her now after everything that's happened."

"And you don't understand what it means to investigate the scene of a crime! When there's any kind of suspicious event, you dig until you get to the bottom of it, regardless of the situation or the danger involved. I wanna know what was in our attic and why it attacked me...if you call what it did attacking, I guess. The only way we can find that out, is start talking to the person that knew about what would happen before it happened. So, you tell me, Einstein? What other person do you know would know that?"

Simon sighed. "Okay, Alvin, you've got me. But still, if she's charging you for information or she threatens you again, I'll drag you out of there myself."

"Fine, you wait here, and I'll go inside. Theodore, you coming?"

"Sure, I'll go!"

"You two are impossible." Simon said, shaking his head as he saw Alvin and Theodore entering the fortune teller's business.

***

"Melina knew that you would return, young Alvin and young Theodore." Melina had a big, warm smile on her face as Alvin and Theodore moved past the beaded entrance to where Melina sat. Since the time they'd been there, Melina had collected another few filled money jars, and Alvin wondered how many people came to see her for such a small place. It didn't seem particularly busy, even on the day they initially came.

"It's nice to see you too, Miss Melina, though...I think I want to ask you a few questions."

She seem to nod knowingly. "You came to ask Melina about your fortune, young Alvin."

"Yeah...about that...can you tell me what exactly you mean by...walking with the dead?"

"Melina is afraid that even if you paid her money, she cannot interfere with the route of comic forces. But young Alvin will soon see the path before him - very soon. Melina says that you should wait by the clearest moonlight, and you'll find its true form - though it may be dangerous, it shall reveal itself to you. And Melina gives you that advice for free." She winked.

"Thank you! Um...can I ask you some other questions too?"

"Sure, ask me as you like - Melina and you boys are friends, yes?"

"Yeah, definitely!" Theodore quipped.

"Melina is very happy to hear that."

"Well, I know you can't tell us but specific things, but...is my attic possessed or something?"

"It is inhabited by some disturbing occupations, indeed. Many they are, but you must determine that. Melina cannot tell you."

"See, I told you, Theodore, now I know I'm not crazy."

Theodore didn't say anything, but gulped in response.

"There's also something I can't remember that happened..."

"Ah - you will also find that answer in your fortune. That I cannot reveal to you."

"Oh, I see."

"Well, looks like that didn't really help." Theodore said under his breath.

"I know, but that's not her fault." Alvin noted. Melina smiled without much words in edgewise.

Alvin exhaled with relief. "Thanks Melina, that's all I really needed to know. If I have more questions, can I come back?"

"Certainly. Melina owes it to young Alvin and Theodore for their company. And young Simon too, though still a skeptic."

Alvin nervously laughed. "Sorry about that. Simon tends to be a little...oh, I don't know..._stuffy_ when it comes to things like this."

"I heard that, _Alvin_!"

Melina stifled a giggle as Alvin and Theodore shook their heads at Simon's yell from the alley. They didn't know he'd actually approached into the alley from the street to wait for them.

"Melina does not blame young Simon for his suspect, but warns that too much suspicion can be dangerous."

"Yeah, we know. We won't let Simon be too...uh, what was the word you used to describe Simon again, Alvin?"

Alvin casually eyed the door and grinned. "Stuffy, Theodore." He raised his voice just enough to where he knew Simon could hear it.

"_Alvin!_"

"Okay, we're leaving! Thanks, Miss Melina, bye now!"

Melina shook her head as she heard Alvin and Theodore racing off, and Simon yelling something to the effect of not disrespecting him in front of company when he wasn't in the room. She believed that they would be perfect for the tasks that awaited them in their home, and she knew it all too well.


	5. Chapter 5: Strange Things

**Chapter 5: Strange Things**

"Next time you two decide to go to a fortune teller, I'm not going in, no matter how cheap it is." Simon sighed as he bent over his math problems for that evening. It was after dinner, and after Dave had given them a long talk about what it means to take information with 'a grain of salt'. Simon didn't need the lecture, but it seemed like Dave had been trying to make sure Alvin and Theodore understood the point.

But as Simon noted Alvin building a few things on his bed that night - Alvin hadn't learned anything at all.

"Alvin, are you sure this is a good idea? Miss Melina did say there were some really...weird things in the attic. You really shouldn't go up there alone, especially if you think it's after you. What if it's a really vicious monster or something?"

"We won't know for sure until after midnight, Theodore. Just in case, I'm planning to lay a few traps. If anything, they'll realize they've tangled with the wrong chipmunk!"

"For the last time, Alvin, I think you're overdoing it. There's nothing in that attic. I mean, Dave just cleaned up there two weeks ago. We might not be in there that often, but there's really nothing up there that we shouldn't know about."

"No, but there could be something that we're overlooking. Some kind of history, whether it might be the house or something in the house, am I wrong?"

"You're really into this, aren't you?" Simon seemed surprised, as he turned from working on his math problems in his swivel chair and faced Alvin as he tied together a few empty pillowcases, forming something resembling a net. "Usually when we talk about anything history related, you pass out with boredom."

"Not when it's actually interesting, Simon." Alvin said enthusiastically. "Not only that, it's my neck that's on the line."

"So you say, but you don't really have much of a neck."

Alvin self-consciously pulled down the collar of his pajamas. "Neither do you or Theodore. Anyway, I'm going to start setting up. Dave's probably still working in his office, so I should be done by the time he finishes."

"Now? It's only 8:30."

"It's the best time. I already have some of the lanterns and stuff up there, so that way, if anything happens tonight - which I think it will - I can catch the culprit. And I'll prove once and for all that my fortune IS coming true."

"Fine, have it your way. Just so you don't end up doing something stupid like you did last night with Dave, I'll go up there with you."

"Can I come up there too? We can have smores to snack on since we had dinner already. I feel a little safer knowing at least Alvin's monster-proofing the attic."

"Actually Theodore, bringing smores is a great idea. While you're at it, bring a few magazines and books too. Because when _nothing actually happens_, I think we'll need something to entertain us while we're in Alvin's company." Simon noted, shaking his head.

"You know, Simon, Miss Melina was right. You've gotta work on that skeptic attitude of yours. It's really cramping your style." Alvin said as he carried his monster-proofing materials out of the room.

***

"Finally, I never thought Dave would go to sleep. Looks like we're all set, and we can expect our monster in about 30 minutes."

Alvin, Simon and Theodore sat in a semi circle between some stacked crates within the center of the attic, with flashlights, lanterns, and some books and prepared smores while waiting for midnight to come around. It was 11:30 sharp, and Simon read one of the popular science magazines, while Theodore bit on a gooey smore, seemingly content. Alvin used his vision and flashlight to make sure that all of the traps were still in place, and felt a little more at ease with the preparation. He slipped into his sleeping back, lying on his stomach and folding his arms to rest his chin upon them as he read through his magazine "Guide to Monster-Proofing Your Attic or Basement".

"I'm jumping for joy." Simon said while reading his magazine.

"Seriously, Simon, cut it out. I know you're a little less than overjoyed that we're here, but it's not even midnight yet."

"I'm completely convinced we won't see or hear anything while we're here. If I don't see anything by 12:05 AM sharp, I'm going back to our room."

"You wanna take a bet on that? I bet $20 we'll see something happen before then."

"Alvin, I'm pretty sure that you don't _have_ $20."

"I know I don't, but I know that _you do_." Alvin grinned, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Fine, it's a deal, but if I win, you have to pay for my next ticket to the Art and Science Museum exhibit opening next month."

"But that's $45! It's going to take out of my next several allowances to pay for that."

"Well, I never said I came cheaply, you know."

"Oh, brother." Alvin groaned. "Fine, you're on."

A long thirty minutes passed, and by that time, the boys were dozing. All of them awoke at the sound of Alvin's watch alarm, which beeped loudly before Alvin turned it off.

"Well, it's that time Alvin. And so far, nothing's happened."

"Okay, it just turned midnight. We still have five minutes."

Suddenly, the light of the lanterns seemed to go dim all at once in the room.

"Okay, Simon, you mind qualifying that as 'something'?" Alvin raised a brow and met Simon with annoyance in his tone.

"Coincidence, much?" Simon's voice was equally cross, but he went silent as a strange scratching started growing louder in the room. Theodore was equally startled, clutching the back of Simon's nightie with one hand and hesitantly looking around with the flashlight in the other.

"Where exactly is that coming from, I don't see anything around here that could be making that noise." Simon aimed his flashlight around the room, looking in the corners and around the traps Alvin had placed earlier.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out. I heard it last night too. Just before I remember the shadow approaching me." Alvin noted, swallowing a lump in his throat. "Okay guys, let's stand in a circle, and look around the room. If we see anything strange, then we just say so, okay?"

"It's probably just a rat, Alvin. You're freaking out too much over it, and you're freaking out Theodore." Simon protested, but found himself standing back to back with Alvin and Theodore, aiming their flashlights, which seemed to flicker between bright and dim, to every corner of the room.

Just as sudden as it came, the scratching stopped. The room was silent, though the lights remained dim.

"See what I mean? It's gone now."

"Does anybody think that it suddenly got cold in here? My ankles are freezing." Theodore said, lowering his flashlight.

"You should've worn your other bedroom shoes."

"No, Simon, Theodore's right - it's a little cold in here. I definitely think something..._Whoa_!" Alvin suddenly felt himself pulled downward, sinking down into something he didn't recognize until he looked at his feet. The wooden floor just below him had become a dark circle that seemed to pull him under. Simon and Theodore noticed, turning around and each grabbing one of Alvin's hands just before he completely went into the circle.

"Alvin, hang on!" Theodore pulled as much as his tiny feet could move him, and Simon pulled with just as much intensity. But whatever was pulling against Alvin's feet seemed to just overtake their efforts by a slim margin, pulling Alvin further in the dark circle.

"Now do you believe me, Simon?!" Alvin shouted.

"I'm not arguing with you while I'm trying to save you, Alvin!"

"You owe me $20 by the way!"

"Will you cut it out and at least try to kick your way back up here from whatever's trying to pull you in?!"

"I'm trying!"

But just as soon as the force had pulled Alvin into the tiny black circle, it seemed to let him go just as abruptly, sending the three crashing into the opposite wall. Alvin landed upside down, while Simon and Theodore simply landed with their backs against the wall.

Alvin opened his eyes to see something emerging from the black circle. A tiny figure that didn't seem much bigger than Alvin or Theodore - but definitely not as tall as Simon - stepped out upon the wooden platforms.

"Guys...look."

"At what, Alvin? There's nothing there. Did you hit your head or something? Wait, dumb question, you're on your head." Simon said snidely.

Alvin ignored him as he took to his feet, slowly approaching the figure that seemed to dust itself off while standing close to the dimming lanterns.

"It's...a girl. She doesn't look much older than we are." Alvin found himself recognizing what the figure was, seemingly transparent, and looking very frantically around the room. She looked forward and saw Alvin, her hair braided into two long ponytails, and her eyes wide, brimming with tears. She was barefoot, and dressed in a knee-length skirt and shirt with frills on the sleeves. Her expression seemed to brighten as she realized Alvin could see her, and she ran over to him, taking his hand and shaking it vigorously.

"Uh, okay...hi...nice to meet you?" Alvin managed to get out the words, but the girl seemed to notice that he was a little freaked out, so she recoiled and put her tiny hands over her cheeks, as if she were embarrassed. He saw her try to speak, but no words came audibly, and she noticed that she couldn't speak, let alone that Alvin couldn't hear her. The tears in her eyes seemed to well again.

"Hey, it's okay. Don't cry. Try to calm down and speak again."

"Alvin, who are you talking to?"

"You can't see her, Theodore?"

"Now I know you hit your head. Really hard. See who?" Simon rose to his feet and started to walk towards Alvin, who looked away from the girl that stood before him briefly to give Simon a weird glance. The girl saw Simon approaching and took Alvin by the hand, pulling him, while running towards the dark circle from which she entered.

"Wait a minute! Hey!" Alvin didn't get a chance to say anything in edgewise as he found himself pulled towards the circle again.

"Alvin, stop! That circle tried to pull you in before and you're trying to go to it again?!" Simon scolded.

"I'm not doing this!" Alvin said, trying to pull against the girl's hand, but she didn't let go, and Alvin found himself yelling as the girl leapt into the circle, while holding his hand and pulling him into the dark void, and the dark circle disappeared, all while allowing the lights in the room to return to normal.

"I don't believe it..." Simon noted, trying to digest what had happened.

"...Alvin's gone...." Theodore finished Simon's thoughts verbally. "We've gotta wake up Dave!"


	6. Chapter 6: Sixth Sense

_Author's Note: As a reminder: The Chipmunks, Chipettes, Dave Seville and all characters within the Alvin and the Chipmunks franchise are © to their respective creators. However, the story, characters that are introduced in the vein of this collective story and the songs penned (as marked) are my own._

**Chapter 6: Sixth Sense**

Dave had only been asleep for less than a few hours. It was one of those evenings where he'd had a lot on his pallette. Between negotiating with the producers and touring promoters, thinking of ways to increase exposure musically for the Chipmunks, helping Alvin, Simon, and Theodore with their writing and instrumentation, as well as serving as a full time father, there were times when life did go a little over his head.

But he also enjoyed the few moments of quiet and the nights he could sleep through without something strange, mischievous, or just plain scary happening. Sometimes all three.

This was not one of those nights, or so he had the worry in the back of his mind as he had settled down that night. He admitted to himself that the events of the night before had worried him, but he believed the boys had understood his talk with them that afternoon, and left the matter at that. He also told Alvin that there was nothing wrong with their attic, and that he'd been there himself about two weeks back when he organized the area and several of the crates that were stored there. There were still many that he had to go through.

Dave wasn't sure what woke him first, the slamming open of his bedroom door, or the shouts of his name by very frantic chipmunks.

"Dave! Dave! Wake up!"

He turned on his bedside lamp and sat up wearily. "Boys, do you know how late it is? What did I tell you guys about being up late at night - you won't rest well for the next day if you keep hours like this."

He rubbed his hands over his face and saw Simon and Theodore breathing frantically, and it was then he realized something was wrong.

"Since it's just you two, I'm guessing Alvin did something, didn't he? What is it this time?" He folded his arms across his chest and sighed heavily. "And please don't tell me he tried to climb the roof again." He felt himself tense a bit at the last note.

"No, Dave, it's not something Alvin did - he was in the attic and...disappeared..." Simon hesitated to find the right words to describe it.

"Disappeared how? And I thought I told you three to stay out of the attic."

"Something kidnapped Alvin, Dave. We saw it! It happened in the attic, even when Alvin monster-proofed it!" Theodore's voice was far more frantic.

"Kidnapped?! Monster-proof...Okay, maybe I should just see what you two are talking about first." Dave attempted to keep his voice level, but he could feel the knot in his stomach tightening as he swung his legs over the side of the bed and followed Simon and Theodore to the attic.

***

"Okay...seriously...this is not the way to make a first impression...oww..." Alvin was a little dazed, but shook himself to his senses as he looked up at the girl who seemed to gaze down at him in concern. Both of them had crash-landed to a ground that Alvin didn't know where because he had shut his eyes for most of the time when the girl had pulled him in. The girl held out a hand, helping Alvin to his feet as he surveyed where they landed.

Alvin knew looking at the four way crossroad, heavy brushes and trees within the heart of a forest that he wasn't anywhere near his attic anymore. And in the light of the moon, he realized exactly what the girl was for certain.

"Y-you're a...ghost?"

She nodded in silence, and tried to speak again, but nothing came out. She seemed to sigh and hang her head.

"Okay...okay. Just don't cry again. I don't understand everything you're saying, but you wouldn't have brought me here if it wasn't important. I'm just not sure why you chose _me_ to bring along."

She hugged him briefly, and a cold shiver went up Alvin's spine - more or less because she was a ghost and felt really cold whenever she came up close to Alvin - but she seemed to run ahead on the path and motion for him to follow her.

"W-wait a minute...don't leave me behind! We just got here!" He sighed, exasperated, as he ran to catch up with her along the smooth, dirt road through the forest. When he finally caught up to where she ran, they came across a village of many old houses, log cabins that were run down to the point of falling over. Some of them had holes in the roofs, while others had broken windows.

"I think you should write a letter to your mayor, saying there's a major safety hazard with half of these buildings. Well...unless your mayor's a ghost too...then I guess it just comes with the territory."

The girl took Alvin by the hand gently and motioned for him to kneel behind some bushes, pressing a finger to her lips.

"Why are we hiding? There's no one here..." Alvin found his voice cutting off with the sounds of several hoofs approaching along the road, and peered carefully around the bush both of them hid to see what was coming on the road.

Alvin saw several horses whining in the moonlight, clamouring like thunder along the road. But what made Alvin's spine shiver were the riders. They seemed human in body, but wore prominent masks over their faces, looking like their eyes and mouths were the carved expressions one would see in jack o' lanterns. Some of them smiled, some of them frowned, others were angry. Alvin saw the girl ghost bristle.

"Who were those guys...?"

She made a series of motions that seemed to point to him and then didn't make much sense otherwise.

"I know you want me to help you, but I don't understand."

She hesitated for a second, pacing in a circle with her hands behind her back, deep in thought. She stopped after about a minute, her face lighting up with an idea, and pointed to the north where they saw the horsemen and carriages traveling, to a large chateau atop a tall, grassy mountain.

"You want us to _follow_ them there? I hate to burst your bubble. There's two of us, and there's like 50 of _them_. Being outnumbered is an _understatement_. And even if I don't know what this is about, they don't look very friendly to me." Alvin scowled and pouted his lip while making the latter note to the ghost.

She shook her head negatively, placing a flat palm out with one hand, and walking with fingered legs using the other, then cupped her hands around her ears. Alvin finally understood what she meant.

"You want us to sneak behind them and listen to what's happening? Okay...that I think can deal with. As long as we don't get caught. Then, will you take me home?"

She nodded, and hugged him again. He bristled and casually ushered her away, in part for embarrassment that made his cheeks flush, in addition to the cold of the night air around them and the ghost herself.

"Okay...okay, I know. Let's just go while we still have the chance. And hope that more of those guys don't end up following us down the road. By the way...I don't really know your name or what to call you...it's kinda awkward."

She seemed to blush and made a series of apologetic gestures. She spelled the letters of her name using her fingers.

"Anilie? Am I saying it right as An-e-lee?" Alvin said, pronouncing it phonetically. Judging from her smile, Alvin knew he guessed correctly. He returned the smile, his confidence showing with their plan.

"Okay, Anilie - let's follow those monsters. I'm sure we can find out what they're up to, at least."

The two of them went back to the main road, running through the town and towards the chateau. Alvin hoped somewhere in the back of his mind that he wouldn't get into too much trouble when he went home, but preferred to face that than the potential trouble they could run into with the riders they saw.

***

Alvin and Anilie approached one of the windows of the chateau, looking inside.

"Okay, now that we're here, how do we get in?"

Anilie walked through the wall of the building, sticking her head out and grinning widely. Alvin raised an eyebrow, then rolled his eyes.

"Let me rephrase that...how do _I_ get in?"

She seemed to giggle, then disappeared through the wall briefly, before walking down the hall to a window with vertical steel bars, not glass. She rubbed her hands together, then pulled two bars apart with her ghostly hands, creating a space for Alvin to fit through.

Alvin found himself nervously laughing then. "I guess being a ghost means you must be really strong. I'm glad you're on my side, at least."

Anilie smiled, before helping Alvin up the minor ledge to the bar window, where he inched through the space and they both jumped into the chateau's main hall. Alvin found himself in partial awe, with the structure's brilliant windows open to the full moonlight and casting light on the green carpet that lined the halls. There were a few intimidating sights like the gargoyles and the empty suits of armor with raised swords lined against the grey walls, but Alvin convinced himself that it was part of the territory. Dim, flickering torches illuminated the grand halls of the chateau where the moonlight did not. Alvin still had no clue about where they were exactly, but he knew he had to follow his intuition and realized that Anilie needed him for something - but he still wasn't sure what it was.

"I guess that just leaves us finding out where those riders went. But where exactly are they?" he mused aloud.

Anilie seemed to point down to the ground, and Alvin could tell what she meant with not a lot of thought behind it.

"There's a downstairs here? Or a basement? Okay, if you're sure, and since you sound like you know this place more than me, lead the way. You know it better than I do."

Alvin followed the ghostly girl as they made their way through the grand halls, and to a wooden door that led into a dark stairwell, illuminated by torches of its own, but it seemed dimmer than the light of the hall. Likely, Alvin noted, because there were definitely no windows where they were going.

The way down was long and Alvin didn't know how Anilie had the stamina to go down them without stopping. He was quick on his feet, but by the time he reached the base of the stairs, he was out of breath. He stopped for a moment to recover it, placing his hands on his knees. Anilie seemed embarrassed and walked back to him to make sure he was all right.

"I'm fine, I forget that you don't have to worry about getting tired, since you're a ghost and all."

Loud shrieks of laughter startled them both to attention, and Anilie, who seemed to hear the origin, pointed towards the end of a long corridor, which they walked until they came upon a balcony, over looking a larger room below.

Alvin gripped the railing in front of him with both hands and looked down - seeing the riders from earlier conversing with each other. Some of them stood, leaning against the walls with frozen expressions. The torches in the room made it seem like their masks were lit ablaze, and it made a shiver run through his spine to see the various expressions that crossed their features. The angry ones especially. Others were sitting at wooden tables in what seemed like a modestly sized library, with a podium in front of the room. He saw one of the riders approach the podium, standing behind it and preparing to speak.

"Silence all." His voice was eerily stern, and it commanded attention even without him raising his voice in the heart of the room. The figure had a mask of empty, narrowed black eyes and what seemed to be a mouth that sneered - the flickering flames of the torches made it seem like his expression danced, and it seemed to startle Anilie as Alvin looked from him to her briefly. The riders fell silent, taking their attention to his form as his stood within the room.

"As you are aware," the figure continued to speak, " the night of the red moon will soon be upon us, and our opportunity to cross into the mortal world will soon be complete. Until that point, our quest to capture the spirits of the departed shall continue."

"The night of the red moon..." Alvin found himself thinking aloud, but in a subdued voice. The last thing he needed were a bunch of these guys noticing where he was. But as he thought about what the figure said, he turned to Anilie.

"Wait a minute, if he's talking about capturing spirits...does he mean you too?"

Anilie nodded, a worried frown crossing her expression.

"Now I get why you're afraid of them. But what are they planning to do?"

She put a finger to her lips and pointed downward, as they both turned their attention to the figure speaking, who seemed to continue forward.

"...And this should be our most immense measure of success. Our confinement here has been too long, too weary, too cruel a fate to be bound by the magic of the Ilrietas. So we will show them what being robbed of their spirits feels like. It will be especially rewarding to add them to our ranks, so that we can conquer the lands here, and the realm beyond us. So, join me - comrades and cronies, friends and fools, we shall be _victorious_!"

A cheer among the group erupted then, and Alvin and Anilie looked at each other with paralleled concern. Alvin turned his gaze back briefly, and noticed something that caught his eye on each of the horse riders - something he hadn't noticed before. Each of them wore a red ribbon, tied in a bow, on the upper left arm of their attire. It made him lower his brow in frustration.

"Those ribbons...wait a minute...that was part of my fortune too! The "red strings" part. Okay, this definitely isn't _just_ 'a fortune'. Simon's gonna owe me more than $20 once I tell him about this, if he even _believes_ me about that."

Anilie gave him a confused look, which made him laugh nervously. "Trust me, it's a long story."

"Sir! I think I hear voices in one of the balcony wings!" one of the riders shouted, and that was more than enough for Alvin to know that someone had caught onto them. Anilie took his hand abruptly and pulled him back into the heart of the corridor from which they came. She drew a circle with her index finger on one of the walls, opening a dark circle similar to the one that they had entered the realm before. She attempted to push Alvin in, but he struggled against her hands propped against his back.

"Wait a minute, Anilie, if they're after you, I can't just leave you here. They'll capture you!"

She shook her head and smiled to him as her form started to disappear.

"Wait...Anilie, where are you going?"

By the time he'd finished his statement, Anilie was gone, and the dark circle he stood in front of had decided it waited long enough, just before drawing Alvin back within it.

"Not again!" But his annoyance was brief when he saw two of the riders coming down the stairs, and realized he'd just had a close call that he'd have to thank Anilie for.

If he ever saw her again.

***

"What kind of things did you boys set up in here?" Dave asked, examining the bedsheet traps and other talismen that were in some areas of the attic. It wasn't anything that Dave could trip on, as he brought one of his own flashlights and carefully maneuvered around the room. Of course, the lanterns that Simon and Theodore had already lit helped move around.

"You mean, what kind of things _Alvin_ set up in here. He planted all these traps. And I think out of all of them, only one went off." Simon noted. "Dave, someone, or _something_, took him. We saw it happen, but we didn't see what. It might have been something like a ghost, because he was talking to someone we couldn't see."

"That's not like you to say, Simon. I thought you knew better than to believe in something like ghosts. Are you sure you boys weren't dreaming? And that Alvin wasn't here when you woke up?" Dave knelt to put his arms around Theodore and Simon, but just as he did, he heard a sound downstairs that caught his attention.

"You boys sit tight here, I'll be right back."

Dave went downstairs to the living room where he noted the source of the sound, and it alerted his senses. He picked up the telephone on what seemed to be one in several call attempts.

"Hello, Seville Residence."

"David! It's about time, do you know how many times I've been trying to call you?! You must be wearing ear muffs over your head while you're sleeping!"

"Miss Miller..?" Dave recognized the voice of none other than the Chipettes' guardian, and sometimes his usual babysitter for the boys. "Miss Miller, I can't talk right now...It seems Alvin's missing, and the boys woke me up..."

"That's what I'm calling you about." Miss Miller said in a frustrated tone. "I found poor Alvin sleeping on our porch by the door. It's a wonder I even found the poor dear, and let alone I don't know how long he's been out here. If I hadn't been up for my usual glass of milk after midnight, and if he hadn't been snoring, I don't know what to think."

"He's there?!" Dave couldn't hide the surprise in his tone, but he found his nerves were calmer than before.

"Yes, and he's still sleeping, I put him on the couch in my living room and covered him up with a good warm blanket. I tried to wake him up, but it seems he takes after you with your rock solid sleeping habits!"

"Well, if it's okay with you, I'd like to stop by and pick him up now." Dave said with a long exhale.

"Sure. I'm up. But I would let the poor dear sleep. He looks like he had a rough night."

As Dave placed the phone on the receiver, he grabbed his jacket just before the door, and he saw Simon and Theodore walk into the room.

"Dave, did you find Alvin?"

"Yes, Simon, he's at Miss Miller's. How in the world he ended up over there, I have no idea, but I'm going to pick him up now. Apparently, she found him snoring on her front porch."

As he left, Simon and Theodore looked at each other with confusion.

"Sleeping? But Alvin was just up a little while ago! Like it must have been minutes since he disappeared!"

"I know, Theodore. None of this makes any kind of sense." Simon sighed as he shook his head. "Somehow, I don't know if I want to know the reason why."


	7. Chapter 7: Signs

**Chapter 7: Signs**

"And so you mean to tell me that you don't remember anything about going to Miss Miller's last night?"

"Not at all, Dave." Alvin sighed as he yawned and fiddled around with the spoon in his Fruity O's. It was morning as usual in the Seville household, except Dave had been trying to pry the events of last night out of Alvin, and he didn't want to talk about it. He knew Dave wouldn't believe half of the stuff he'd learned, and he didn't really want to get in trouble for things he couldn't explain.

"Well, I'm glad you're all right. I ought to ground you three for not listening to me in the first place, but..." He sighed, trailing off for a minute. "Not today. We have rehearsal for the new single this afternoon at the studio. I think Miss Miller said the Chipettes would be there rehearsing with their schedule, so we'll have to make accomodations as necessary. Simon, I'll work with you after school to make some minor edits on the song - it looks like it pans out fine, but the management wanted to tweak the arrangement a little."

"Okay Dave, sounds good to me."

After Dave gave them their usual lunches and they headed out to school, Simon suddenly stopped Alvin about a block up from their house.

"Okay, Alvin, spill the beans. I know you were lying to Dave about something."

"Whatever do you mean, Simon? You hurt my pride, to the core of my immortal soul."

"Yep. You're definitely hiding _something_, all right."

Alvin sighed. "Okay, you've got me. I guess I'll explain everything at lunchtime - besides it's a _long_ story, and I still don't understand it all."

***

"That's extreme even for your imagination. The night of the red moon...actually, that's probably the least farfetched part of your story." Simon noted thoughtfully as he bit into his sandwich. The lunchroom was crowded that afternoon, as usual, but the Chipettes didn't seem to be there yet, and Theodore was too busy eating to comment, though he listened with part fascination, part horror to everything that Alvin had gone through the night before.

"Why?" Theodore asked, looking at Simon with a confused expression.

"Because I've heard on the news that there's supposed to be a red moon tomorrow evening. It's called a Tetrad, where the moon eclipses the sun. It _really_ doesn't happen often, though. I planned to watch it myself using my new telescope. They're also having an event at the Art and Science Museum for those who want to see it happen. I was going to ask Dave if I could see it - I know he's probably going to say no to the museum event, but if I'm at home, it shouldn't be a problem."

"Oh no..." Alvin sighed. "If it's happening tomorrow evening, then that means those scary guys will be in the mortal world. They'll be after more souls and everything! They could come after ours, too!"

"Which brings me to my next question - if they were talking about the mortal world, where the heck was the place you traveled to with Anilie?" Simon said, a frown crossing his features.

Alvin thought about it for the first time since he'd been there and back. "Now I get it, no wonder they were talking about souls so much."

"Hey! Miss Melina predicted that too. So that's what she meant by Alvin walking with the dead. She meant with ghosts and ghouls...and stuff..." Theodore observed, but gulped at the recognition of so many supernatural beings in one place, so much that he trailed off in thought.

"Still think it's just a coincidence, Simon? I think that's every last part of my fortune, wouldn't you say?"

"All right, all right, Alvin. As much I hate to admit it. So I guess Melina might be off the hook, for now - but it still doesn't explain how she knew this would all happen, and what's supposed to happen tomorrow night when these - what did you call them? - Riders are supposed to appear."

"I didn't get a chance to ask Anilie that, at least before she disappeared. I don't even know if she's okay." Alvin had a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Maybe she'll show up in the attic just like she did last night. If you said she disappeared before the riders got to you, then she should be okay." Theodore said, patting his big brother on the back.

"Only you two forget one tiny detail - we_ can't_ go in the attic, _remember_? We're lucky Dave didn't ground us this time around."

Alvin exaggerated his expression to a contorted look of horror. "Which would you rather have happen, Simon? Us being trapped by a bunch of _angry, scary_ monsters who can do what they want with our immortal _souls_ and control the entire world...or getting grounded by Dave?"

"In that case, you're asking me the lesser of two evils. I will go with the one that's more likely to happen."

"Oh, brother." Alvin said, his forehead meeting the slick wood of the cafeteria table.

"And would you like to tell me who this Anilie girl is?"

Alvin sat up, alert, almost immediately hearing the voice behind him. He turned with a sheepish grin to face Brittany's angry expression. Eleanor and Jeanette stood not far behind her, but Alvin wasn't sure just how much of the conversation they heard. From his best guess, they were around long enough to hear the mention of Anilie's name.

"Uh...Hi Brittany..."

"Don't you 'Hi Brittany' me! We're destined to be together forever and then you decide to go around with some other girl?! Well, I've got news for you, mister! When you come to the studio this afternoon, you've got a song that I'm dedicating _especially _to you! And you'd _better_ be there to hear it!"

Alvin tried to put a word in his defense, but Brittany, carrying her lunch tray, sauntered off past Eleanor and Jeanette.

"Come on girls, we're taking our company _elsewhere_!"

Alvin exhaled sharply after watching the Chipettes leave the area. "I take it _that_ dedication wasn't a good one, was it?"

"Do I have to state the obvious, Alvin?" Simon shook his head.

"No, I think I get it." Alvin said, hitting his forehead against the table again while Theodore gave him a reassuring pat on the back.

***

Alvin, Simon, and Theodore arrived at the studio later that afternoon after stopping on the way home for their instruments and music sheets, then doing what homework they could before the time they left. Simon spent a while with Dave in the studio tweaking the melody and learning how to arrange the composition more to his choosing.

Alvin and Theodore went to hear part of the Chipette's new single - "Signs". Alvin had to swallow a lump in his throat because when he heard the song midway, he could already tell what it was about.

"_...Boy, you bewitch me all the time_

_I'm the rhythm in your broken rhyme._

_It's the same deal, no matter how you're feelin'_

_You play a joker's hand - you send me reelin'._

_You think I watch the world, hanging by a thread bare_

_But I don't call it, I see what's really there._

_I see all the signs that are telling me no_

_And you need time for your heart to grow, yeah_

_When I call you out, you say there's nothing that you can do._

_I'm not staying, boy we're through - I'm through with you._

_You change things to go your way, but I don't fit_

_The poisoned apple that I've already bit._

_You flow through me, hit me like a shockwave_

_Next minute, I know I can't be saved._

_You think I'm crazy to read it on a tarot card,_

_But believe me boy, I'm not taking leaving that hard._

_I see all the signs that are telling me no_

_And you need time for your heart to grow, yeah_

_When I call you out, you say that life's no clover_

_I'm not staying, boy we're through - and now it's over."***_

"Okay ladies, that's a wrap!" One of the producers said, as the Chipettes filed out of the recording room. Brittany walked out of the room and right past Alvin without a word in edgewise. Eleanor and Jeanette, however, stayed behind.

"Brittany's got the wrong idea..." Alvin said.

"Then who was it that she was talking about - what was her name - Anilie?" Jeanette asked, adjusting her glasses slightly.

"Anilie is a ghost."

"A ghost?!" Eleanor and Jeanette exclaimed simultaneously.

"I don't think Brittany's going to take that very well...I mean, Alvin - you've never dated a ghost before, have you?" Eleanor asked.

Alvin shook his head. "It's not like that. I-I mean...our attic is haunted." He said it straight out, not being able to think of anything else to describe the experience.

"Yeah, by a ghost." Theodore followed up, repeating. "Alvin was the only one to see her, but Simon and I saw when Alvin disappeared from our attic with her. That's why we were talking about her at lunch."

"Oh!" Both of them made the connection almost immediately.

"Wait a minute, Alvin - did that have anything to do with Miss Miller finding you at our house last night? Miss Miller told us that much, but we were sleeping. Brittany thought you were coming over for some reason, so that's why she's kinda upset...about the whole thing with Anilie and everything...or at least what she thinks...you know." Jeanette made the connection.

"Yeah, somehow I ended up going from my attic to your front doorstep." Alvin sounded annoyed, furrowing his brow and crossing his arms. "And the night before that, I went from the attic to my roof without remembering how I got there. Well, I've had it! I'm going to figure out once and for all what's going on. And I have to find a way to help Anilie too."

"But how?"

"I think it's time that we pay a visit to Melina." Alvin said with a smirk, turning his attention to the two Chipettes. "Bring Brittany, you guys - and some money too - I think that discount's still on." They didn't know what he meant, but nodded in agreement as they left the studio to find Brittany.

"Wait a minute, Alvin - what about rehearsal, we've gotta be back here in an hour to record our single with Simon." Theodore mentioned, grabbing Alvin's arm.

"Simon's definitely not going with us since he's with Dave - and he'll probably be there a while until they need us. Relax, Theodore, we'll be back before they know we're gone." Alvin walked ahead as Theodore nervously wiggled his fingers.

"I sure hope we don't get in trouble..."

***

"Oh, Melina has more company, and her favorite company as well. Come right in, all of you. You ladies look beautiful today." Melina greeted the Chipettes as they entered the fortune teller's business, moving past the beautiful beading. Alvin noticed that Melina had switched the colors - to a red and mahogany set of beads. Theodore wondered how much time it took her to do it, but was a little

"Wow...she's got good taste." Brittany noted. "Both in her own fashion and an eye for seeing it in others, of course."

"Oh, brother." Jeanette said under her breath.

"So what can Melina do for young Alvin today? I trust your fortune from last we met has come true?"

"Yeah, does that mean I have any more bad fortunes, Miss Melina?"

Melina smiled. "That would depend on you, young one. Of course, Melina's offer still stands if you want Melina to read all of your fortunes, should you be curious. And they are all quite new."

"Ooh, I want my fortune told!" Brittany noted, but Eleanor and Jeanette held her back.

"Hold on Brittany, she's still talking with Alvin." Eleanor said, with an exasperated sigh.

Alvin shook his head. "Well, I'll wait until they have their fortunes told, if they want."

"Ah, young Alvin shows his gentleman side. A wise choice. Now, which one of you ladies would like your fortunes read first? It only costs a dollar."

As Melina started to read each of the Chipettes fortunes individually, Alvin and Theodore waited patiently near the entrance.

"You wanted to get another fortune from Miss Melina?"

"Maybe, Theodore...but I want a little longer to think about the questions I should ask her. I have a feeling that we should try to go back to the attic again tonight."

"But what about Dave? And what if something happens to you again, Alvin, that would be...really scary..."

"I know...there's gotta something that explains why I end up going from one place and then the next - and it's definitely not just the portal. Maybe I can ask her that too..."

"Um...just a question - how many questions are you going to ask her?"

Alvin looked from Theodore to where Melina sat with each of the Chipettes, laughing and talking. Alvin found himself nervously laughing.

"We might be here a _tiny bit_ longer than we expected..."

"We're gonna be in trouble." Theodore recognized, with a worried frown.

***

"It's ten minutes past, where are they?" Dave seemed a little rattled as he stood outside of the recording studio, but his. "Simon, you don't know of any place they could have gone?"

"Well, I did hear Brittany said they were going out with Alvin and Theodore for a while - maybe to eat? They're probably held up in traffic since it's a little past 6 right now."

"Maybe that's it. Maybe I'm just worrying too much - but we can't keep the panel waiting for too long - it's already the end of the working day. They really wanted to hear the final version of this."

Simon looked through the window at the several members of the panel and sighed. He also hoped that wherever they were, Alvin and Theodore would get back to the studio soon.


	8. Chapter 8: Ghost in my Room

_Author's Note: Thanks for the comments/reviews for those of you who have posted so far. I definitely appreciate them. "Alvin's Ghost" should be wrapping up within the next few chapters or so. I still have some formatting and minor edits to do to the remaining chapters, so it's only as I have the time to do them.  
_

**Chapter 8: Ghost in My Room**

Alvin and Theodore had their chance to talk to Melina after the Chipettes had finished their chatter - presumably good, considering all three of them loved Melina's company. Brittany was a little freaked out by Melina's tendency to use the third person, but after a while, she didn't mind the oddity.

For a moment, Alvin thought Brittany had forgotten about their argument earlier, until she haughtily turned her head away from him. "Don't think this lets you off the hook, mister!"

Alvin groaned, taking a seat in front of Melina's desk, while Theodore pulled up a nearby chair to sit beside Alvin. Eleanor and Jeanette continued to sit at the table. Melina turned towards Theodore and Alvin, giving them a small smile.

"Would you like Melina to read your fortunes again?"

"No, thank you. We...have to be somewhere..." Theodore started to respond.

"Oh no! Rehearsal!" Eleanor exclaimed, taking notice of the time by a wall clock that hung not far from where they stood.

Alvin laughed nervously, swallowing a lump in his throat at the thought of Dave shouting at them out of the range of producers that were waiting for them. "Just a few more questions...though we're gonna be in trouble no matter how long we take from here on out."

"Allow Melina to use her powers - that way you don't waste more time than you need."

Alvin couldn't mask the confusion on his face as the fortune teller held his hands, palms upward.

"Melina can hear the questions in your mind, if you only concentrate. Melina will tell you what she knows, if the spirits allow her to do so. Close your eyes, and allow your mind to be free - so the questions can come to Melina clearly."

Alvin agreed silently, not fearful, but uncertain about the whole thing. In a way, he thought it was exciting - because he'd never met a mind reader before. He could hear Melina giggling for a moment, and Alvin was suddenly aware that she heard his last thought.

"Concentrate." She reminded him softly, and he focused his thoughts. All of his questions came to the surface of his mind, like bubbles fizzling to the top of a glass of soda. After a long pause, she released his hand.

"All right, you can open your eyes now."

When Alvin did so, Melina's expression seemed a little more even - not with the usual bright smile that she showed him, but more firm and poised in her chair.

"Melina will tell you what she knows. The friend you seek will be in the attic by the moonlight, same time as the night before - but you will not be the only one to see her this time. You should not be alone in your journey - Melina warns you now - the way is dangerous as the red moon approaches. The ones you call riders are a group known as the Hanti."

Theodore and the Chipettes turned their attention fully to Melina, as she continued the story noted in her response to Alvin. While the Chipettes weren't aware of what was going on, they found themselves intrigued by the story.

"Long ago, the Hanti were a tribe that lived beneath the earth. They were not human, since humans need air to breathe, but they were not spirits either. They decided that they were tired of the darkness, and started digging tunnels to the surface, stealing the horses and livestock from the farmers who worked the land above, so they could see and conquer more of the world above ground. The farmers feared the Hanti, since the Hanti wore masks that were meant to scare their prey and shield their faces from the sun. At first, it was easy for the Hanti to steal what they wanted, but the farmers decided to stop them. The farmers called upon a tribe of wanderers, called the Ilreitas. They commanded a powerful magic to not only send away the Hanti, but robbed their souls from their bodies, to prevent them from returning to the surface. Ever since then, the Hanti have been working to regain their place on the earth, and vowing revenge not only against the Ilreitas, but also humans.

"They did return to the mortal world once before, during Colonial times in the Americas. They disguised themselves as humans, still bearing the masks they had worn before during the red moon. But then...the Hanti were sent away by the witches and mystics of the time, bound yet again with their spirits stolen again. But the ones named as witches, mystics, and fortune tellers, were killed during the Salem Witch Trials. Now...there are few of us left, and very few who believe the tales we tell. Our powers - Melina's power - cannot hold them. There is something...something that allows them to cross the bridge between the spirit and human worlds. But you...your belief in the improbable, even the impossible, allows you to see the bridge. And you may find what will break the bridge for them."

"Melina cannot say why they need souls or what their powers are. All Melina knows is that by the next red moon, the Hanti will walk the earth, and try to take it away from the humans."

"Wow..." The Chipettes, Alvin, and Theodore said simultaneously.

"S-so, Alvin can see ghosts and the portals and stuff...because he believes in them?"

"Yes, young Theodore. It is also the reason why you and young Simon saw the portal that took young Alvin just last night, but you didn't see the ghost because you didn't believe in her."

"So Anilie really_ is_ a ghost..." Eleanor trailed off.

"_W-what_?!" Brittany stated, surprised. "So, the girl that Alvin was talking about earlier..."

"...Is a ghost in my attic. I was _trying_ to tell you." Alvin cast a sideways glance at Brittany with annoyance leaking into his voice.

Brittany blushed, but shook her head and recovered quickly. "W-well, I was wrong, then. I guess you're off the hook this time, Alvin. But I still don't know who this Anilie is."

"I don't think we'll be on time, even if we left now..." Jeanette observed, changing the subject.

"Better a little late than very late, but I don't think our manager will mind that much - we're technically done for the day. Though I'd hate to think of what Dave will say, since you boys still have a song to record." Brittany said.

"Don't remind me." Alvin rolled his eyes. "Thanks for everything, Miss Melina!" He called, as all of them started running out the door.

"Good luck, young ones! Melina wishes you all well!" She called after them, smiling softly, but her smile faded slowly with the worry that bubbled inside her.

***

Later that evening, Alvin, Simon and Theodore arrived home. Dave had been a little worried that Alvin and Theodore had been late, but the driver was nice enough to cover for them on behalf of the traffic, which made them about 15 minutes late. It went smoothly, though Alvin was vexed that the panel didn't want to hear the ideas behind his song, not to mention he hadn't had much time to work on it between school work, recording, and dealing with the oddities that Anilie's visit had provided.

Alvin sat on his bed, reading through the monster book he'd ordered from an oddball mystic company a few months before. "Hey, look! Miss Melina's story about the Hanti's listed here - I guess if we knew who they were earlier, they would have been easier to find. Sure could have saved us a lot of time and trouble." He scowled and closed the book.

"What's wrong, Alvin?" Theodore asked, looking up from his desk while he made a few drawings for his art class homework. "Are you still mad about the producers not considering your song?"

"I don't really have a song to show them, but at least they could have heard my ideas." Alvin said, with a pout on his lip. "I know it could be a better single than the one Simon did. I just know it."

"Maybe you should try to work on it tonight."

"I dunno. Not only that, we've gotta think of a way to get into the attic without Dave noticing." He said, slapping a fist into his palm. "You got any ideas, Theodore?"

"Not really. But even if we did get into the attic, wouldn't Anilie be the only one who could take us to the realm of spirits that you went to?"

"...I kinda forgot that part of it." Alvin frowned. "Even if we wanted to help her, there'd have to be some way we could get to the other dimension. But I know one thing for sure - I'm totally trying!" His expression brightened on the latter note.

"I wanna go too, even if it is a little scary..."

"Atta boy, Theodore! Now you're talking!"

"I don't know if I should be that excited about it though..." Theodore said, with a fearful expression.

"What are you two talking about now?" Simon said as he entered the room, carrying a few of his books from school.

"Just your _average_ stuff about ghosts and ghouls and stuff like that." Alvin said casually.

"Then I'm not interested. And I hope you two aren't going to try to get back in the attic tonight. Besides, Dave locked it up for now."

"He _what_?" Alvin and Theodore said at the same time.

"You heard me. He really doesn't want us going up there. But it's not like I want you to go up there either. I don't care if Anilie does come tonight - you're not going, Alvin. Somebody's gotta tell you when you're doing something stupid, and this is _definitely_ one of those times." Simon's tone was firm and unrelenting.

Alvin scowled. "Well, it's not like I wanna go by myself, or even want to face a bunch of scary looking, _soul-stealing_ monsters! But I promised Anilie I'd help her. She's in trouble, Simon. We're _all_ in trouble!" Alvin shook Simon so much by the arms that his glasses fell off. Alvin looked sheepishly apologetic, but Simon's brow narrowed as he bent to feel around for his glasses.

"Remind me, when I find my glasses, to knock some sense into your head..._several times_!"

At that moment, the phone in the room started ringing, and Theodore rushed to pick it up. "Hello?"

"Hey Theodore! It's Eleanor - is Alvin there?"

"Yeah, he's right here. Alvin, it's Eleanor, she wants to talk to you."

Alvin took the phone from Theodore, still annoyed at Simon, but controlled his tone as he spoke. "Hey Eleanor, what's going on?"

"Alvin, Brittany says she wants to come over sometime tonight, and Miss Miller told us that we could. We wanted to know if it would be okay with you guys and Dave. Brittany said she didn't want you doing anything weird by yourself, so we want to help in any way we can."

"Wow, really? That's a first for Brittany."

"Tell me about it! She's usually not this worried, to be honest with you. But if it's okay with you guys and Dave, just let us know."

"Sure, hang on a second."

"Where are you going, Alvin?" Simon asked, as Alvin walked towards the bedroom door.

"Looks like we'll have a _little_ more company tonight than expected." Alvin wiggled his brows mischievously, as he disappeared around the corner.

***

"I can't believe Dave said yes." Simon sighed.

As the Chipmunks and Chipettes sat around the kitchen table that night playing Blackjack, the room was quiet, and the moon shone full and with clouds streaming across the sky outside.

"Great, I'm busted." Brittany placed her hand on the table, ending up with 24. "Don't tell me you're not happy to have us here, Simon. Besides, somebody's gotta keep Alvin in line."

"Tell me about it." Simon agreed.

"Guys, cut it out." Alvin said, and cleverly curled his tongue over the side of his lip, looking at his hand, and wondering if he should draw from the deck again.

"Yeah, I think we should finish up this game, then decide what we should do next. I wouldn't mind going to sleep now...well, if we're gonna just get up again later..." Jeanette whispered the latter statement under her breath, not wanting Dave to overhear them. He checked on them often to see how they were doing, walking back and forth from his office. It was close to 10 PM, and Eleanor looked like she was about to fall asleep. Her deck had taken her out of the game a while before.

"That sounds like a good idea." Theodore agreed, holding his hand of cards carefully. "I'm staying. I've got 17."

"I've got 20! Beat that!" Alvin called confidently.

"I've got 22. Nuts." Simon grumbled.

Jeanette picked up another card. "I've got 21! Two fives and an ace!"

"Aww nuts." Alvin folded his arms across his chest, frowning at the loss.

"How are you guys doing?" Dave came in the room almost right on schedule.

"We're about to get some sleep." Simon noted pointedly.

"Well, I hope all of you have a good evening's rest. Night, ladies. Night fellas."

"Night Dave," they said before going to their respective rooms.

***

The Chipmunks and Chipettes slept for about 2 and 1/2 hours. Alvin was the first one to wake up as he heard the familiar scratches from his ceiling. They were loud and rang in his ears, startling him awake. He knew it was after midnight, but there was no way that he'd be able to sleep through the furious sounds he heard.

Simon and Theodore followed shortly after Alvin, waking up to the loud sounds that came from above their heads.

"Well, that's the same sound, only this time it seems like it's just as loud as it was when we were in the attic before." Simon observed.

Alvin leapt from his bed and slipped on his bedroom shoes. "Let's go downstairs - Brittany and the others should be up by now, if that sound woke them up like it did us."

Sure enough, the Chipettes were already downstairs, looking at the ceiling as they heard the scratching noises.

"Was it always this loud?" Brittany asked in a loud whisper.

"Definitely. It should've woken Simon and Theodore the first time I heard it. It _definitely _woke me up." Alvin answered in a loud whisper.

"Maybe we can try to find Dave's key to get up there?"

"No, Theodore, I'm pretty sure one of us would wake him up searching for it." Simon noted. "I guess since I'm involved in this whole thing now - I do remember there being a half open window on the side of the house to the attic."

"See, I knew Simon would think of some plan to get us there!"

"It's not like I want to, Alvin. But as usual, I don't have much choice."

"Come on guys, let's go outside and find that window, but we have to be quiet." All of them followed Alvin's lead as they went outside.

It didn't take them long to find the window, and they had to assemble their own version of a ladder, the boys standing on each others shoulders, while the girls stood atop each other. Eleanor was the first to reach inside the window - pushing the window fully open to crawl inside. She searched the attic briefly to find some old sheets to tie together and throw down for the rest of them to climb up. After all of them climbed through the window, they surveyed the attic, from which the sound continued.

"Ugh, that noise is so annoying. If that's Anilie, why does she have to make it so loud...and creepy?" Brittany said, her normal voice returning.

"She's probably trying to find the way here again." Alvin said aloud. But as he thought about it, he snapped his fingers together.

"I've got it! Maybe all she needs to find it is a hint."

"What do you mean, Alvin?" Jeanette asked.

"I get what Alvin's saying." Simon recognized. "Jeanette, tap your foot against the floor - where you're standing is right around the place where the portal appeared last night."

"O-okay, I guess I could give it a try." Jeanette tapped her bedroom slipper on the wooden floor, and stepped back quickly. The room went quiet almost immediately.

"I think it it worked...." Eleanor said in a low whisper.

But none of them expected a large circular portal to open up beneath their feet, dragging both the Chipmunks and Chipettes into the strange realm beyond.


	9. Chapter 9: Run, Run, Run

**Chapter 9: Run, Run, Run**

"This is really weird; it's like we have an elevator attached to our ankles. A really fast elevator with no windows." Jeanette pointed out, as the familiar attic suddenly disappeared before their eyes into something of a dark void with flashing specks of light. "Alvin, do you think...whoever's doing this...knew that we were coming?"

"Maybe." Alvin said. "But at least we're having an easier ride than I did last night. Almost _too_ easy." He cut his eyes over at Theodore, who looked incredibly confused and worried as he looked around the area. Theodore was relieved to see he wasn't alone, but anxious as to what lie below them.

"You call this _easy_?!" Brittany's voice was furious. "I can't move my feet. We're stuck in this dark, _icky_, pasty _stuff_." She tried to lift up her left foot, but it wouldn't budge. "This is ruining my brand-new bunny slippers!"

"Even if we could get free, I don't think I'd want to - who knows how far down we would fall if we weren't stuck in this." Simon noted. "If only I could get a sample to take back with us..."

"Simon, do you have to take samples of stuff _everywhere_ we go?" Alvin raised an eyebrow.

"It's called science, Alvin."

"_Sure_ it is."

"I wouldn't expect you to understand the delicate art of discovery."

"And I don't expect you to understand that there might be more important things than this..._stuff_! We're about to meet some scary Hanti, who want to steal our _souls_, and you're not _worried_?!" Alvin grabbed Simon's collar, but Simon shrugged him off, while not bothering to mask his confusion.

"Who the heck are the Hanti?"

Alvin slapped his forehead with his palm. "Figures you wouldn't know - they're the riders I saw the other night."

"And how would you know their name, Alvin?"

"We heard about it from Melina; Alvin took us there this evening. It's actually a really interesting story...but I know how you feel about fortune tellers, Simon..." Jeanette revealed it as succinctly as she could.

Simon groaned. "I give up."

The six of them had an abrupt stop and drop from where they stood, right into grassy, slightly damp forest brushes, into which they landed safely. When Alvin opened his eyes, he recognized the road he'd traveled with Anilie the night before.

"Hey guys, this is it!" He leapt out of the bush, brushing the leaves from his clothing. Theodore helped Eleanor out of the bush that she'd landed in, while Simon and Alvin pulled Jeanette and Brittany from where they landed. Brittany checked her bunny slippers and saw not a trace of the dark material that had bound their feet. She seemed relieved, even if she didn't say anything other than uttering a loud sigh.

"So where do we go now, Mr. Ghost Chaser?" Brittany said smartly, folding her arms and looking at Alvin out of the corner of her eye.

Alvin nervously laughed. "Well...I guess we could head to the chateau that's at the end of this road, but...that would lead..."

"That...would lead us straight to the Hanti." Jeanette finished Alvin's sentence, though her nerves showed through the statement. "I don't know if we should go that way yet...maybe we should think about finding Anilie first?"

"I think we just did...or she found us - look up there!" Eleanor grinned and pointed above their heads at the sight of the girl ghost under the light of the full moon, sitting on a tree branch and waving excitedly to the Chipmunks and Chipettes below.

"I knew she'd be okay." Alvin grinned as he returned the wave to Anilie, and she floated down from the tree branch in the middle of the Chipmunks and Chipettes.

"This is Anilie?" Brittany raised an eyebrow. "But she's _just_ a kid."

"Who'd you think she was, Brittany?" Eleanor asked.

"Um...well...I don't know, but listen, _missy_," Brittany turned her full, partially enraged attention to Anilie and touched her nose against the ghost girl's face. "Alvin's _mine_, so that means he's off limits, you understand?"

Anilie's face had transformed from a wide, sweet grin to a fear of the Chipette, causing her to back away slowly from where Brittany stood.

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day when Brittany would scare a ghost." Simon noted.

"Brittany can scare _anybody_ when she's like that." Alvin noted under his breath.

"Okay, _obviously_ you don't understand me, so I'll make it clear to you." She grabbed Alvin by the arm and held his neck under the flex of her elbow. "He's mine, _m-i-n-e_." Alvin tried to wiggle out of her grasp, but she squeezed tighter to keep him from running away.

"Brittany, I think she gets the point..." Jeanette began, but Brittany cut her off abruptly.

"No way - I'm making my point _perfectly clear_." When Anilie shook her head and made a series of hand motions, it made Brittany's blood rush to her face.

"What do you mean, _no_?! Are you _challenging_ me?!"

"No, Brittany, I think she means that if you keep holding Alvin like that, you'll suffocate him." Simon pointed out, looking down at Alvin, who was frantically gasping for air.

"Oh no!" Brittany released him quickly as Alvin started coughing. "I'm sorry Alvin, are you okay?"

"Was that _really_ necessary?!" Alvin responded when he caught his breath. "Ugh..."

All of them were alerted when they heard the shrill whinny of a horse through the still skies, and Anilie made a series of frantic motions towards the trees.

"We've gotta hide, something's coming!" Eleanor said, and all of them retreated behind the bushes and trees, just as the horse hoofs thundered against the ground, and the Hanti laughed heartily through the once quiet night.

As the sound of the hooves became distant, the seven of them rose from outside the bushes.

"T-That...was the Hanti?" Theodore said in a low voice.

"Definitely. We've gotta follow them."

"Alvin, might I remind you that if you plan to go after a bunch of angry horsemen like that, whether they steal souls or not, you have to have some kind of plan." Simon scolded.

Alvin started up the path ahead of them, turning back to the group with a grin on his face.

"Let's just say this is one plan I'm working on as I go along. Lead the way, Anilie!"

Anilie grinned as she flew ahead, motioning for the Chipmunks and Chipettes to follow her.

***

"What a big, scary place." Theodore stated, as they all arrived and snuck into the large chateau.

"Actually, I find it fascinating. it's architecture comes straight out of the 15th or 16th century. Look at the paintings, they look very authentic - even preserved since that time."

"That's nice Simon, but we don't have _time_ to look around." Alvin crossed his arms.

"Where are we going?" Brittany was impatient, tapping her foot against the carpet.

Anilie motioned for them to follow her. As they did, Alvin noticed that she took them a different route than the way she'd taken him before. They remained on the upper floors, walking along the carpeted halls and peering into several rooms cautiously. There were many grand bedrooms and formal meeting rooms peppered throughout the building - most of them unoccupied. Anilie warned them ahead of time if she believed someone were coming, and all of them hid from the peering eyes of the Hanti guardsmen, frequently making rounds through the long hallways. Luckily for the Chipmunks and Chipettes, there were many places for them to hide. Alvin guessed they stepped up security since the night before - noting his and Anilie's intrusion.

They finally came across an offshoot chamber, which had a staircase leading into the hall of small rooms. Anilie placed a finger to her lips as the Chipmunks and Chipettes followed each other down the narrow way. They heard distant voices coming from one of the rooms - and it sounded like a heated argument.

"All these spirits we've captured and we still need more to take the mortal world? Is there anything else that we can do?! Not only that, I think we had a intruder upon our meeting yestereve.

"You mean _intruders_, good sir." A thick, grim voice answered the frantic statements of a familiar voice. Alvin recognized the frantic one as the Hanti leader, who spoke at the meeting the evening before.

"Pell, did I ask you to correct me?"

"No, sir."

"Then do _NOT_ interrupt me. What matters are not the intruders, but whether we get this plan off the ground in the first place!" The voice sighed, pausing for a long time before he resumed the conversation. "I'll admit - centuries of being down here have tied my hands far more than anything else. And those mortals think they can get away with everything. I long for a soul of my own - something to fill this void in my being."

"He really doesn't get out much, does he?" Alvin asked Anilie in a whisper, to which Anilie shrugged and shook her head.

"I don't think any of them get out much - their wardrobe is too ancient, and those horrible looking masks aren't doing them any favors!" Brittany responded in a haughty, yet subdued voice.

"No matter, Pell, I await the night of the red moon eagerly. The gateway to the mortal world will be open for us to take the souls of the living and use them in our plan - no, my plan - to return our souls to us and live yet again. You've done the data - how many have we captured?"

"5,000, give or take some stragglers, sir."

"That's not enough...and we've been searching a while now. How many souls of the Ilreita?"

"All but two, sir."

"Confound it - that's not enough. We need all of them captured in order for the artefact to activate. That alone ensures that the gateway will open and remains open."

"Artefact?" Simon asked in a low whisper. "That's new. I wonder what kind of structure would open their world to ours. It's bad enough I don't understand how we, or Alvin, got here in the first place."

"I think Anilie has some kind of power to teleport between worlds, Simon. That's how we got here. Wait a sec...Anilie, how many times have you brought me to and from here?"

Anilie held up three fingers.

"But I only remember coming here two times. Now and last night."

"Wait a minute - so you had the power to create those dark circles? So is that why Alvin ended up in all those odd places before?" Theodore asked.

She nodded, a guilty look crossing her face.

"So you were the one who put me on the roof, too? And at Miss Miller's door?"" Alvin had a cross expression on his face as he folded his arms.

Anilie made a series of gestures, pointing to Alvin first, then using her body in a number of dynamic positions before ending up drawing lines in the air that resembled a roof.

"Maybe it's a good thing that I'm great at interpreting visual languages and Pictionary, but I think what Anilie said was that the first time she tried to bring you here, you fainted, and she took you to the best place to get some air, the roof. But then something startled her and she had to disappear - she didn't mean to leave you there. Something calling for you." Simon interpreted the series of gestures almost immediately.

Alvin, Simon, and Theodore looked at each other. "Dave!" They said simultaneously. Anilie continued with a series of gestures that Simon attempted to interpret.

"Then after she sent you back from when the Hanti were chasing you two, she saw you passed out again from the ride, so she took you outside, Alvin, to get you fresh air, but on lower ground because she overheard that you nearly fell off the roof; she didn't realize that you fell asleep, though. She says her powers aren't that strong or perfect yet, but she had to do it because all of her family members were captured and that you were the only one who could see or help her...the...um, I don't know what that says."

"I think I can guess - it's the Ilreita - Anilie is part of the Ilreita." Eleanor said.

"_What?_" Everyone except for Alvin and Eleanor exclaimed.

"Shh!" Alvin warned. "I knew there was something special about Anilie. If that's the case, we need to get outta here as fast as we can! If they're searching for her, they'll find us all and capture us!"

"I don't think you are going anywhere." A loud voice boomed from behind them, and they all looked into the dark eyes of one of the Hanti, who unsheathed his long sword from his side.

"_AHHHHH_!" Brittany screamed, and she brought her foot down hard on the Hanti's toes, as she happened to be standing near the tall figure in a long overcoat. He yelped, dropping his sword, and hopping on one foot in pain. That gave Alvin time to find his words and start running as fast as he could.

"Come on guys, let's go!" All of them ran out of the hall as fast as they could.

***

"Sir, did you hear something?"

"I did, Pell. And it came just from the other room." Pell and Grol took to their feet as they went to the hallway, where one of their Hanti fellowman took to his breath, while grabbing his foot. His mask, appropriately, was that of downcast eyes and an extended frown.

"Master Grol, intruders! They're...they're mortals!"

"_What?!_ How did _mortals_ cross the bridge into our lair?! Do they know our plan?"

"I don't know sir, but definitely one of the Ilreita spirits were with them."

"That explains why they're here - all of it. Find them. Summon the guard, our horses and our group. Do what you will to the mortals, but the Ilreita is mine!" Grol hissed, and the three of them ran to the end of the hall in pursuit.

***

"Okay, if anyone has any ideas, I'd like to hear them right about now."

"I thought you were the one with ideas, Mr. _Plan-As-I-Go_."

"I'm kinda running on empty, Simon. Now is _not_ a good time!"

Both Alvin and Simon glared at each other inside the meeting room in which they hid from the Hanti. Eleanor peeped through the keyhole to see if anyone had followed them, but she didn't see anyone in the hall.

"Well, if we don't figure out something soon, they'll catch up with us." Eleanor instructed.

"I'm really, _really_ scared right now...." Theodore said in a small voice, but Eleanor put an arm around his shoulders.

"It's okay, Theodore; we won't let anything happen to you."

Anilie's expression didn't differ much from Theodore's, as her shoulders slumped and she lowered her head.

"It's okay, Anilie. We'll figure out something eventually. And Theodore, Eleanor's right - there's _no way_ I'd let anything happen to any of you guys."

"Even me, Alvin?" Brittany batted her eye lashes at Alvin while nudging him in the ribs. He rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, Brittany, you too."

"What's with the attitude?! We might be in trouble, but there's no need for you to be _rude_." Brittany scoffed.

"Wait a _minute_...what are we _doing_?!" Alvin shouted, suddenly getting the attention of everyone in the room. "Instead of running away from them, we should be fighting back! We probably don't have swords and some of the stuff that they have, but still!"

"I hate to break it to you, Alvin, but they do have a home court advantage. Even if we did have swords, there's still no place we can really hide from the Hanti. Besides, we can't kill them, and even if we could, we don't know how."

"Well...we'll just have to improvise! Now listen carefully; you too Anilie. We're getting out of here one way or the other! Here's what we'll do..." Alvin said, as he summoned everyone in a circle, and drafted a plan.


	10. CH10: Everybody Wants to Rule the World

_Author's Note: Looks like Chapter 11 will be the last full chapter with respect to what the formatting looks like on my end. Chapter 12 will be the full versions of the songs penned throughout the story, and my final author's notes on the creation of the story - what inspired it, and that sort of thing. Feel free to read through it if you'd like._

_The name of the song featured in this chapter is called "Fact in Fiction" - it's another of the original songs I penned for this story. You'll probably note it was one of the titles that was featured earlier. And you may note that the chapter titles are somehow linked to songs in some measure. I'll explain in my end notes more about it._

**Chapter 10: Everybody Wants to Rule **

**the World**

If the Hanti were once an elite group of soldiers known for their intimidating qualities, it didn't seem so much after The Chipmunks and Chipettes set traps through the chateau. Anywhere they wanted to go, the traps were prepared behind them . Some of the Hanti were caught under drape traps in which they unknowingly triggered by ropes beneath their heavy boots. Theodore happened to have a sack of marbles in his pajamas, so that came in handy for tripping up some of their pursuers. Alvin had a few rotten eggs to throw (to which Simon wondered why Alvin would have rotten eggs in his PJ pockets in the first place). The Chipettes would take turns luring them into various traps that were set with respect to the suits of armor, that would collapse one after another and fall like dominoes - either in the Hanti's path or on top of them.

About two floors above where they once were, Alvin finally sank to his knees in exhaustion, but he had a wide grin on his face.

"That was definitely awesome! Why don't we keep setting traps for them? That way they won't have a chance to invade the mortal world by the red moon tomorrow!"

"Nice try Alvin, but you're assuming that we'll be up here and able to hold them off for that long. And I don't think that's _practically_ possible."

"According to you, _Mr. Critical_, nothing about this whole situation is _practically possible_." Alvin said smartly, and Simon frowned in response.

"You're right, and I _still _don't think it's possible, but we're in this mess regardless. Dave will wonder where we are if we don't show up tomorrow morning, not to mention we still have school and rehearsal to worry about." Simon looked at his watch after his statement, raising a brow at the recognition.

"We've been here about an hour according to the real world. It's like we're dreaming, but obviously not. Time passes by much more slowly in the real world than our brains can process it here. So it feels like we've been here longer. I'm wondering how we're going to get out of here and what we're supposed to be looking for."

Anilie rose to her feet abruptly, tugging Simon's sleeve while motioning to a nearby window. All of them followed Anilie's motion, and saw a dense fog covering a landscape of rolling hills, thick forests, and a long bridge that shined a distance away from the chateau. Stony gargoyles adorned the sides of the bridge, but they couldn't see what lie beyond the bridge in the smoky haze.

"So is that the bridge we're looking for? The bridge that's supposed to lead them to the mortal world?" Jeanette asked.

"Beats me. I really wanna go home right now. As cool as it was to give those jerks what was coming to them for being rude, I'm sleepy. " Brittany yawned.

"There are a lot of Gargoyles on that bridge...what if they come to life or something?" Theodore said worriedly.

"Relax, Theodore. I really doubt a bunch of old and cracked statues will start coming to life out of the blue. But I do see something interesting, even as far away as that bridge is. Or maybe I'm just imagining it."

"What is it, Simon?" Alvin asked.

"Well..." Simon hesitated, looking uncertain. "I'm pretty sure I've seen _something_ like those gargoyle statues before - though I don't believe in it, it's definitely described as...well...deja vu. And it's not just around the chateau we've been running around for the past hour. I think I saw something like it at the Science museum at home. One of the old exhibits, but I can't put my finger on where it was..."

"If you saw something like it at the science museum, maybe that's where we need to be. Hey, wait a sec, didn't you say there was going to be a big event there?"

"For once you _actually listen_ to me, Alvin. Yes, there are going to be people there...wait a sec! Now I get it - if the gargoyles are indeed the same, then the statue must be the artefact linking these two worlds together, and they have to be linked to the Hanti somehow. That means they know something about the gathering and are going to start taking souls right around that time!"

"I think you finally listened to me _for once_, too." Alvin gave Simon a sly grin. "So we can just say 'bye bye' to the gargoyle statue, and this will all be over - the Hanti won't be able to get to our world or do anything...right?"

"Theoretically, that's possible. Since when did you get so smart?"

"Maybe you're rubbing off on me."

"If I were actually rubbing off on you in the right ways, then I would consider that a compliment." Simon rolled his eyes and sighed.

"But that doesn't explain why they're after the ghosts and spirits here." Eleanor said. "I mean, I don't know about it as much as you two do, but Anilie's still in danger. So are the spirits that are already captured." Anilie seemed to sigh and nodded her head as she floated beside Eleanor.

"Anilie, do you know anything about where they are?" Jeanette asked.

Anilie hesitated for a moment, but then pointed downward.

"Great. They're downstairs with all those scary Hanti, while we just spent all our time trying to get upstairs away from them!" Brittany exhaled sharply in frustration, causing her bang to puff briefly in the air. "Well, I've had it! I want out of this place now! Come on girls, we're going home."

"No way Brittany, we're not leaving poor Anilie to fend for herself." Eleanor pointed out.

"She's right, Brittany. Plus, I don't think we can get home anyway without Anilie making another portal - and she looks like she's just as tired as we all are." Theodore added.

"Well, then, I guess I'll have to find my own way out - Whoa!" Brittany had leaned against a stray brick on the wall away from the windows, causing it to push in and open up a secret staircase leading down into the belly of the chateau. Anilie had caught Brittany before she could tumble through the doorway.

"Looks like you found us a shortcut." Alvin said smartly.

Brittany looked at Alvin with an annoyed expression, then looked up at Anilie, who floated to her side. "Okay, Anilie - I guess it's not worth fighting when you've had a rough night too. Lead the way."

All of them followed Anilie down the secret staircase.

***

"You mean to tell me that a measly group of mortals and one Ilreita were able to do _this_?!"

Master Grol was a being of very little patience, and to see his comrades and underlings reduced in such a way filled him with a passionate anger that boiled and overflowed in his formal voice. Whomever the intruders were, they had a very odd, but effective means of fighting back, enough to subdue those in his rank. And yet his mask of empty eyes and a snarl smile remained intact - fortified in the coldest steel color and reflecting the moonlight that streamed from the window. His advisor, Pell, had a mask that featured a tight line for a lip and thin slits for eyes, making him virtually unreadable even in his intonation.

"Sir, we're searching all along the quarters for them now. We believe we heard voices on the second floor."

"No matter, Pell. I know exactly where they're going. It's...convenient that they would show up just before the light of the Red Moon, but I can assure you they won't get far - not if I have anything to say about it. If none of you will handle such a group, then I shall."

He flung his grey cape over his shoulder, walking towards the stairwell that led to the basement dungeon. Pell followed close at his side. The chatter among the Hanti started to grow frustratingly clamourous, and they followed their leader with unrelenting dedication.

***

"_As I'm looking down this big, old hall_

_I want you to look inside your crystal ball_

_See if my future's looking bright..._

_Lady Luck, please be kind_

_Please tell me what we'll find,_

_There's no telling what we'll see tonight..._

_Where can I find the fact in fiction?_

_Something's gotta ease this tension._

_How will I ever understand?_

_Guess all I'll do is lend a hand_

_And hope that danger isn't too near..."***_

"What are you singing, Theodore?" Jeanette asked as the group made their way down the staircase. "It sounds really good."

"Oh, just something in my head right now...I guess you could say singing makes me not as nervous."

"Well, if you _really_ want to give away where we are, keep right on singing."

"Sorry, Simon." Theodore sighed and kept quiet for the rest of the way down.

"Aww, come on, Simon, lighten up. And don't worry Theodore, we'll go home as soon as we figure out a way to free the spirits trapped in here." Alvin looked down the staircase to see a doorway, with the light reflected on the stony wall and steady cackle of flames dancing in his ears.

As the Chipmunks and Chipettes entered the room, they couldn't believe the number of ghosts that they saw. In a large rectangular room - with stone walls, several old bookcases, and worn tables - a myriad of ghosts either wandered, sat talking to each other, or leaned against the wall in silence. The entire room seemed alert when they entered, and before Alvin could say anything he noticed that Anilie hadn't followed them.

"What's wrong, Anilie?"

Simon walked to the doorway, running his hands along the stony frame of the door, and rubbed his hand under his chin.

"This is definitely strange. We're able to walk through this door fine, but I don't think Anilie can. It must be some kind of barrier here. Which explains why the ghosts in this room can't get out either. Otherwise, they wouldn't just be standing around here"

Two of the ghosts took notice of the group, and the mention of Anilie's name, one so much that a female ghost, with long dark hair over her shoulders and a traditional, long garment, flew over to the door frame. Anilie jumped excitedly at seeing the female ghost, but they didn't touch either the door frame or just inside it.

The other ghosts seemed to take notice of the Chipmunks and Chipettes and their somber expressions instantly lifted, some of them actually taking the time to dance about, but none of them could speak. Alvin noticed that all of the spirits were quite human and didn't look scary at all.

"I know you guys are happy, but...how do we get you out of here?" Jeanette asked the ghost that had approached Anilie.

"You won't do such a thing, and even if you could from here, I would make sure you didn't have the opportunity." A voice startled all of them, and they saw Anilie being lifted into the arms of one of the Hanti. It was the same figure Alvin recognized at the meeting the evening before, speaking in front of all the Hanti. His grin looked menacing in the flickering lanterns lining the walls.

"And who exactly are you, daring to enter this place? I am Master Grol, proud leader of the Hanti. I did not expect visitors at such a late hour; I certainly did not invite you mortals."

"I'm _Alvin_, and _we_ didn't ask your name!" Alvin said boldly.

"I know you didn't. After all, you are the ones who intruded upon our land, let alone our headquarters. Not only that, you're being rude to my guests."

"You call keeping these poor spirits in this cold and scary place your_ guests_? You need to learn what it means to keep company." Brittany said snidely. Both Brittany and Alvin walked up to a few feet shy of the Hanti leader, but realized he wasn't alone as the Hanti soldiers started filing behind him. Captain Grol took several steps towards them, causing Alvin and Brittany to back away nervously. Anilie struggled against the grip of the leader holding her, but she couldn't wiggle free.

"I don't get it; if we can't even touch Anilie, then how is he able to hold her like that?"

"Since we are neither living nor dead," Master Grol answered Simon's question aloud, in a laughing voice, "we can hold those of mortal or spiritual capacity. It was nice of you to serve as an escort for this young spirit. Even bringing her to her family - with the rest of the Ilreita. How touching. She's someone I need for my extended plan, and you six are not involved. You see, we Hanti are immortal beings imprisoned by the Ilreita. They have stolen our souls, and have trapped us beneath the moral world for many centuries. This..."

"We _already_ know the story; don't try to fool us. You are _obviously_ the bad guys! Now let Anilie and the other spirits go! Or else..." Alvin demanded, but his voice trailed off.

"Or else you'll what?" Master Grol demanded, his mask coming within two inches of Alvin's face. Alvin laughed nervously.

"I'm still trying to think up that part..." Alvin grinned, but the Hanti's growled in response.

"_Enough_! If you think I'll let a group of children disrupt our plans for taking control of the mortal world and enacting our vengeance, this is where that thought will end!" Master Grol's voice bellowed, as he summoned a stream of magic erupted from his left hand, oriented towards the Chipmunks and Chipettes.

But Anilie took the opportunity to bite the Hanti leader's hand. The bite shocked him so much that he fell against a nearby wall, which caused the magic blast to ricochet off of one lantern, bounce off a stony brick, then break the magic barrier on the door and plow through the Hanti guardsmen.

"Wasn't that a really lucky break or a fluke?" Jeanette asked.

"Either way, I think we should get out of here!"

"You said it, Brittany." Alvin added.

The spirits wasted no time escaping, as they flew past the once magically barricaded door, and through the stairwell out past the windows of the chateau halls. They streamed like fireworks and comets in the night sky.

"After them! Don't let them escape!" Master Grol commanded. As he did so, he grabbed Anilie while she summoned a portal for the Chipmunks and Chipettes to go through. Alvin and Theodore witnessed it just as the Hanti leader abducted her, but after The Chipettes had already gone through, and Simon was close to going through the portal himself. One of the Hanti guardsmen also grabbed the lady ghost that had recognized Anilie from before.

"Hang on, Anilie!" Alvin started back, but Simon grabbed his arm. "We can't Alvin, the portal's about to close, and I don't think we'll be able to get back if we stop now."

"But what about Anilie and her friend? We can't just leave them here." Theodore pleaded.

Theodore saw Anilie nod to them and motion to the portal as Master Grol pulled her back.

"I think she wants us to go, and we don't have time to discuss it!" Simon pushed Theodore in, and grabbed Alvin's arm to pull him in as Simon jumped through the portal, just before it closed into nothingness.

***

"Anilie!" Alvin awoke with a start, breathing heavily for a moment until he realized where he was. In his own room, in his own bed, and the alarm clock rang at high volume. He quickly turned it off, realized it was morning and groaned. Theodore awoke about the same time, but both of them saw Simon had already gotten up.

As much as Alvin was glad, by fluke, they had freed the spirits held in the heart of the Hanti chateau, there were still two spirits they hadn't saved.

And as Alvin and Theodore met each other's glance, they knew those spirits still made all the difference, and that the night of the red moon would come sooner than they thought.


	11. Chapter 11: Passion Colors Everything

_Author's Note: Okay, so I ended up splitting this chapter into two pieces, so this is not the last chapter on the formatting end (Ugh, I tried to edit out places where the writing was a bit superfluous, but in the end, the chapter ended up being over 5,000 words, so I had to split it to make it easier for all of you to read. Most of the chapters in this here average about 2,500 to 3,500). The final chapter will be uploaded soon, though, as will the lyric sheet and my final comments. Thanks again for those of you whom have submitted comments/reviews thus far, I really appreciate it._

**Chapter 11: Passion Colors Everything**

At breakfast that morning, Simon and all three of the Chipettes were downstairs eating breakfast as Alvin and Theodore came in the kitchen. Alvin and Theodore were dressed and ready for school, though much later than the others. Dave was preparing the last of their bag lunches. None of them said much during breakfast, and Dave reminded Alvin, Simon and Theodore of afternoon practice. Alvin breathed relief knowing that they could probably wrap up recording and head to the event before anything could happen.

As Dave handed each of them their lunches, he noticed Alvin's downcast expression.

"What's wrong, Alvin?"

"Nothing, Dave."

"Oh, I know it's something, all right. It's as plain as the nose on your face, which would be ten times _longer_ if you were a certain puppet." Dave frowned, but set Alvin's lunch on the table, and motioned for Alvin to take a seat at the table, while Dave took a seat next to him. "Anything you want to talk about?"

"Well, it's kinda a lot to explain - and even if I did, you probably wouldn't believe me." Alvin confessed.

"There are a _lot_ of things you've done I haven't believed. " Dave said with a sigh. "Somehow, I don't think what you're worrying about could top those things, _unless_ you prove me wrong. And somehow, you _always_ do. What is it this time?"

Alvin laughed nervously. "Well...let's just say - I...uh...kinda made a promise to somebody, and... it might be too late to keep it. But if I don't, then the person I made the promise to...might be in a lot of trouble. I don't know what I should do..."

"Well, it's never too late to keep promises, Alvin. If you give someone your word on something, then you have to follow through with it no matter how hard or scary it might be. I can't fight all your battles for you boys, as much as I want to. But if you want me to help, I can't do anything unless you tell me."

"Well, you know that event that's going on at the Arts and Sciences Museum this evening?"

"Yeah, I think Simon mentioned something about it earlier this week - something about a moon event?"

"That's the one. Can we go, please, _please_?!" Alvin jumped up, grabbing Dave by the collar.

"Okay, okay, _easy_. I don't mind swinging by there after rehearsal; I'll even go with you guys to the event. It might be a lot of fun."

"_Really_?! Great, thanks Dave!" Alvin's expression instantly brightened, and Dave raised an eyebrow as he saw Alvin grab his lunch, and race out the door.

"That was definitely strange. Alvin worried about not going to a museum event? That's not like him. He must be trying to impress someone. Probably a girl." Dave shook his head, with a smile, and shrugged his shoulders before getting ready for work.

"At least he's not getting himself into trouble this time around."

***

"Guys! I got the okay from Dave on the museum event!"

"All right Alvin!" Theodore said.

"Nuts, I knew there was something I forgot to ask Dave this morning." Simon said, carrying his bag lunch and backpack as the Chipmunks made their way to school.

"What the _heck_, Simon?! How could you _forget_?!" Alvin grabbed Simon by the shoulders, startling Simon that he dropped his bag briefly. Luckily it didn't spill, but Simon looked at Alvin with an annoyed expression. "We've _gotta_ find some way to save Anilie and the other ghost lady. And the _only_ way we can do that is to find that...um...what did you say it was, again?"

"It's an _artefact_, Alvin. And I didn't mean to forget, but you do realize we were up all night and we nearly overslept this morning? It's bad enough that Brittany, Eleanor and Jeanette all beat us out this morning while we were waiting for you. Still, I'm thinking that the artefact might have been that missing statue -the gargoyle - on the bridge that Anilie showed us. That may connect our world to theirs, and they may use that bridge to come into our world. It would be opportune for them, because a lot of people will be there, and they want to steal souls. But even then, it's a theory - I'm not even sure how they're going to do it, or even if they can. What we're looking for may not even be there! You _do realize_ that, right?"

"But what about Anilie and the other ghost?!"

"I don't know. We may not be able to go back to that world again. Anilie was pretty much our only link there, and if she's been captured...then...well..." Simon's voice trailed off.

"But we _have to_! I made a promise, and I can't just let Anilie down!"

"Calm down, Alvin." Simon took Alvin's hands and shoved them away, then picked up his bag lunch promptly. He noticed Theodore looking at something...seemingly fixated without saying a word about his and Alvin's conversation. They had come close to passing the usual place where Melina ran her fortune telling shop.

"What's wrong, Theodore? Are you okay?"

"Guys...where's Miss Melina? Her shop's not there anymore."

"What do you mean her shop's not there?" Alvin turned and looked at Theodore.

"Look at the alley. It'd be one thing if just the sign was gone, but look there now."

In the alleyway where Melina's fortune telling room used to be was a sandwich shop called "Luigi's Deli", with a flashing neon sign and a guy sweeping the porch. The Chipmunks looked between each other in surprise.

"Okay...that definitely wasn't there yesterday." Simon observed.

"Something's definitely wrong. We're going to talk to that guy, and we're going there now!"

"Alvin, we're going to be late for school..." Simon scolded, but saw that Alvin had already started stomping towards the tall, plump man, with Theodore following close by. Since he was the only one standing behind, Simon grudgingly followed them.

Alvin was the first to reach the man, wearing a baker's hat and apron, and he looked like he was going to greet them cheerfully, but Alvin took the opportunity to yank the poor man's apron to where his face was close to the frustrated chipmunk.

"Okay mister, what's the deal? Who are you, and what did you do to Miss Melina's business?!"

"Luigi doesn't know what you are a'talkin' about!" The man seemed shocked, and even a little angry at such a rude gesture.

"_Alvin_! Look, forgive my brother for his _very unruly_ behavior. He had a rough couple of nights, and it's _not_ been good on his...relationships with others." Simon cut his eyes at Alvin as he addressed the shop owner. Alvin crossed his arms and looked away with a haughty expression. "What he _really_ means is...there was a fortune teller that used to be here. Have you seen her, and did she move or something? Her name was Melina."

"Luigi not know of any fortune teller here." The shop owner said, shrugging his shoulders. "Luigi's been here for five years now. Maybe you boys have wrong shop? In any case, Luigi not open until lunchtime, so you maybe come back later?"

As the shop owner retreated into his shop, the three chipmunks stood in shock at the revelation.

"Okay...now I'm officially freaked out, because that...can't be anywhere close to possible." Simon noted, closing his eyes and wondering if he would make sense of anything that was going on.

***

"I knew it! I told you that I wasn't crazy!" Brittany said as the Chipmunks and Chipettes sat at lunch together that afternoon. Alvin had told them about the strange disappearance of Melina's shop, almost as if it never existed in the first place. "It wasn't just a dream that Melina disappeared from where we met her! And Jeanette was the one who told me I probably had the wrong block!"

"Why would she disappear like that?" Theodore asked.

"I really don't know. But I bet it has something to do with the coming of the red moon."

"You think, Alvin?" Simon noted sarcastically. "Okay. Let's run with these...weird events for a sec. Everything we know is going to happen at the museum - what are we supposed to do when we find that gargoyle statue?"

"What do you think? We're going to _pulverize_ that thing to pieces!"

"Nuh-uh. _No way_. We'll be destroying museum property AND we'll not only rot in jail for the rest of our lives, but we'll also break any chance of saving Anilie and the other ghost woman. And who knows how many other ghosts or spirits they might have that weren't in that room or didn't get away."

"You're not getting me, Simon - we won't have lives if the Hanti cross that border. That gargoyle statue is their way out. And it's our way in! You said it was the bridge between our world and theirs, so why can't we use it?"

"That's a possibility, but you were the one who had the smart idea of breaking the statue."

"I was talking about _AFTER_ we saved Anilie."

"And you're not getting me? You want to go back in? We don't even know where she is. I'm asking you what will happen when..."

"Guys, _stop arguing_! You're confusing me and giving me a _headache_!" Brittany interrupted with a sharp exhale. "Simon, you plan too much and Alvin, you don't think enough! Why don't we just _go_ to the museum, and _work_ our way from there."

"I think Brittany might be right. The Hanti seemed like they had their own plan too, and we won't really know what will happen until we get there. And it's not like we can get there until the portal opens anyway." Eleanor chimed in.

Alvin sighed, sinking in his cafeteria seat. "Fine. I guess you're right. I just hope Anilie's okay."

***

"_ARGGHHH!_" Master Grol's frustrated growl echoed through the chateau while he paced around his office with his second hand officer, Pell. He knocked a can of pens, and other items from his desk, threw books

"Do calm yourself, sir. The Red Moon will rise quite soon." Pell's voice was formal and calm as he watched his master sink in his large chair, Master Grol's mask still contorted in the same grin - but he obviously wasn't amused.

"That, Pell, is precisely the reason why I _CAN'T_ be calm! All of those souls we've spent long months capturing and in one night - _ONE_ night I might add - we nearly lose all of them to a bunch of meddling mortal children?! Our vengeance was not meant to be so...so _trivial_!"

"I suppose I shouldn't remind you that it was your magic that, while accidental, freed them, sir?"

"Do you want to _cross_ me, Pell?" Master Grol stated with a hiss. "Because you know exactly what I can do to your afterlife..."

"N-no, sir. You've made your point." It was the first time Pell actually felt nervous in his master's presence, and uttered an audible gulp, even with his mask contorted in the same firm expression.

"Okay...perhaps I should calm myself and look at the bigger and brighter picture." Master Grol stepped out of his office, walking down the long narrow hallways to a room upstairs - one where there were many paintings and glass figurines of various animals, city representations and other collectibles. It looked like an antique shop or a miniature display room. But Grol focused his attention to a set of glass orbs placed within a case. Pell had followed him the whole way, and followed his master's attention to the case.

Within each orb were diminutive spirits that pounded futilely against the glass.

"The bigger picture in all of this is that we now have every single one of the Ilreita in our possession - even the one that tried to transcend time to recruit for her ancestors. I've no doubt that woman tried to summon those mortal kids here using that Ilreita's spirit to guide them. It was her cursed plan all along to stop us. Hmph. Well she's no longer a bother to us now. I think using the Ilreita's magic to bring her here worked quite splendidly, don't you, Pell?"

"I believe so, sir."

Master Grol took one of the orbs in his hands, and faced the tiny ghost girl who was imprisoned in it, while she faced him with an angry expression - pounding on the glass.

"So your name is Anilie, as they said? I think you should find it very inconvenient that your power will be the one to steal the mortal souls beyond our world and those that you helped to release yestereve. Should be a pity if the souls we relinquish tonight end up being those of your friends, wouldn't you say?"

Anilie pounded against the glass, kicking and scratching at it, but the Hanti leader subdued her by summoning his own magic to quell her spirit.

"Save your energy, young one. You'll not interfere in my plans. Pell, summon the guard, and tell them to come to this room to receive each of the orbs. We shall perform the rite very soon - and make our glorious trek into the world of the living. Is the gateway ready?"

"Yes sir, I believe the artefact is still very much intact, and the gateway ready."

"Bring the woman along too. I should think she'd like to see the destruction of her world as well as her ancestry, as futile as she'd tried to save it."

"Yes, sir, I shall go at once." Pell headed from the room, while Master Grol looked out the window over the skyline of their shadow kingdom. He whispered low beneath his voice, as the fire from a nearby fireplace cackled in the reflection of his mask.

"Yes, Melina Redgrove - your soul will be the last I take - as your family was the one that confined my people. But now, we shall take the overworld as the one that's truly our own. Remember, the strongest are the only ones that are meant to survive. And we are by far, when our potential is realized, stronger than your mortal friends."

***

Alvin bent over his music sheet with a pen in his hand, frustratingly placing every lyrical line he could possibly place on the page as it came out of him.

"Man...I'm even surprising myself how much of this is coming out. Dave's gotta choose my song - I just know it'll be epic. I just wish it wasn't coming from something that makes me mad as heck to think about."

"Well, Alvin, umm...don't they say that part of your inspiration can come from frustration?" Jeanette was not far from where Alvin was working in Set B, going over her singing parts for the new Chipettes single. "I mean, that's kinda why Brittany wrote the song 'Signs' - because she was kinda frustrated at you."

"Yeah, for all the wrong reasons." Alvin quipped.

"But she actually wrote that song before the whole thing with Anilie...so...there are probably some other things she's mad at you about..." Jeanette trailed off, fidgeting.

"I guess so." Alvin admitted, shrugging. "But I'm not letting up on the challenge! Even if she's mad at me, I'm going to make her see that I _can and will _write a better single."

Jeanette sighed. "Well, if you wanna go for it, Alvin, go for it. She might not be that happy about it though."

"It wouldn't be right if I didn't try. I just hope Dave and the other panel members approve it. I mean, if they approved Simon's song, then they've gotta at least consider mine, right?"

"I think so. I mean, our panel even went with Brittany's last minute because they said it fit with the current sound in music. You know - angry relationships and all that."

"Yeah, but my songs have to be about something more than that. Something that sounds and feels different." Alvin said, playing a few notes on his guitar. "I even told Dave that when he taught me how to write my own songs."

"Well, good luck Alvin. Though I know Brittany probably wouldn't like me saying that, though - I think Eleanor wants you guys to do well too, even if it's in a competition."

"Thanks, Jeanette." Alvin gave her a thumbs up sign and took his guitar and lyric sheet into Studio A, where Theodore and Simon were resting from their last session.

"Alvin, what are you doing? We already spent more than an hour recording the single." Simon asked as Alvin went into the sound booth, setting up his guitar and placing the lyric sheet in front of the mic. "I'm surprised your voice isn't sore."

"Trust me, it's not. And I'm doing what I should've done a while ago. I've got a song to sing, and it just came to me. I may not have had a good fortune in the past few days, but at least I can make my own dreams happen, right?"

"Ooh, Alvin, you finished your song?!" Theodore said excitedly. "But what's it about? And how did you finish it?"

Alvin grinned and winked. "Let's just say I have some 'inspiration from frustration' to get out of me before we start kicking the Hanti back to wherever they came from tonight. And yeah, I took it from the song I started performing for you, Theodore."

"Oh, joy. I've _gotta_ hear this." Simon said facetiously, sitting back in his seat.

Alvin strummed a few lines on his guitar and began to sing.

***

"Seville, you didn't tell us there was another song in progress." Dave heard one of the board members speak while he came from the meeting with the panel. The recording had been smooth for Simon's single, and Dave was relieved to have it behind him. Not that it hadn't been done well, but because it was such a scramble to put together. But as he heard the panel member's voice, he responded with a perplexed expression.

"There wasn't another song in progress - why?"

"Well, I think one of your boys is actually singing in the studio right now. The song I'm hearing sounds very nice. Impressive even with the minimal arrangement."

Dave stepped out into the hall, where the panelists were listening in the hallway, and Dave heard Alvin's voice from Studio A, in the recording room.

"_Half past midnight, I'm undercover_

_Sounds echoing through my room._

_Don't know why, but know there's another_

_Try to hide, but I know it's coming soon._

_When I look 'round, in a different place_

_Can we leave the light on, just a little longer?_

_Cold and dark, my heart starts to race_

_See her face, and wish I were a little stronger._

_When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you_

_When Fortune smiles, there's no gettin' through_

_When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you..._"***

"I...never heard anything about another song. It's probably Alvin freelancing his work again. He sometimes does that for creativity."

"Well, I have to say he's doing a stand up job. Let him finish the song, and we should talk about recording it. I think we were too hasty trying to rush the schedule for the single. I'd like both the song we recorded before and the one he's singing now to be on the same EP, but also on the release schedule. But we should take our time organizing it as opposed to Larry's suggestion. Besides, who knows what other songs could come out of what you call 'freelancing'."

"R-Really?" Dave was surprised, but he saw the other panel members approaching the recording room, some of them chatting quietly among themselves. He shook his head, allowing himself to relax as he heard the melody and leaned against the hall wall. He didn't know from where the song originated, but he could even tell from his own ears that the song would be a hit.

***

"That was awesome, Alvin!" Theodore exclaimed as Dave drove them on their way to the museum that night. "You even used the same line you sang before as your opener!"

Simon didn't follow Theodore's comments audibly, as he seemed to be shaking his head in disbelief about the whole thing - the panel had collectively decided to pick up Alvin's and his song for an EP, and they asked Dave to include songs that were each written by the boys, meaning Theodore would have a chance to write his own, and then another song would be penned by all three of them. No word on a release date though- as they planned to push back the date to accommodate for more recording time.

"I'm still wondering how you came up with such a nice song, Alvin. And why you didn't tell me you were working on something like that." Dave asked as he drove to the museum.

"It kinda just came to me, Dave. Though, I've kinda been working on it off and on the past few days."

"Well, if you can come up with more songs like that, I'd tell you to keep doing what you're doing, because it was great!"

"Trust me, Dave. I really hope that what inspired that song doesn't happen again!" Alvin said, as he took a sharp breath, as his eyes searched the darkening skyline.


	12. Chapter 12: Fortune Smiles

**Chapter 12: Fortune Smiles**

Simon and Theodore followed Alvin through the front lobby of the museum. Dave was at the front desk, paying for the tickets the three held in their hands as they looked around the room. The crowd for the event was modest, but large enough to where a degree of chatter had begun, and filled the room as if it were completely occupied by each square inch. The sky grew darker that evening, and the Tetrad - the coming of the red moon - would occur in less than 15 minutes. Guards were already ushering people towards the balcony for the event.

"Where's Brittany, Eleanor, and Jeanette? I thought they were supposed to be here by now." Simon adjusted his glasses as he looked around the room.

"About time you boys decided to show up." Brittany marched toward them, with Jeanette and Eleanor close behind her. "So what now? Find the statue, right?"

"That's what Alvin just said a few minutes ago." Theodore said aloud, but his voice wasn't very confident.

"Well, lucky for you guys, we actually found it - the gargoyle statue." Brittany continued. "But we can't go down that way; there's a lot of people and guards down there and we couldn't get close to the statue."

"Distraction is my middle name." Alvin winked, while Simon rolled his eyes.

"Uh-huh. Usually when you say that, you get _someone else_ to act as the distracter. Or just find someone you can distract for your own amusement."

"I've got the _perfect_ person in mind." Alvin looked over towards Dave's way as he approached them.

***

Melina sat in one of the rooms of the grand chateau on the third floor. The fortuneteller knew that her powers were bound in the beautifully crafted room, but it still felt like a prison to her. The warm red of the long armchair blended with her nails and robe attire. Even the light from the flames flames danced in her dark eyes and spilled over her seated frame. But it was of little warmth to her. Her magic was bound in this place.

Master Grol entered the room, the glare of the flickering hearth reflecting in his mask.

"Are you ready to watch the rite with us, dear Melina? Surely you can't miss the festivities." His tone finally seemed to match the sly grin that he had on his mask, but Melina wasn't convinced by his expression.

"Melina wasn't invited, and didn't want to be." She looked away bitterly.

"Now, you have me all wrong. Of course I want you to be a part of the party. Matter of fact, I want you to be right in the middle of it." He placed one of his gloved hands under her chin, lifting her face to his, but she shoved his hand away.

"Melina will not, nor ever will be, a part of your plan. Melina knows you erased her from the mortal world for now, but it won't be for long." Her brows lowered.

"Really? You seriously thought you could stop my plan, let alone by sending a group of insignificant brats and one of your own to this world?"

"Melina knows you lost most of your spirit captives, so she thinks they did well, very well. They'll stop you in the mortal realm too." Her expression turned into a mischievous smile, but as Master Grol pulled her to her feet her, frown returned.

"You _don't _fool me, _witch_. You, and the rest of the Ilreita will meet your due fate tonight by the end of the red moon, when we capture enough souls to pay due to the ceremony. Once we acquire enough souls with the powers we'll harness from your kind in these spirit orbs, we'll be able to steal spirits from the still living and dead alike - regaining our own spirits and roaming the earth as the strongest tribe of the ages! And your measly powers won't be able to save any of them. Guards, take her to the bridge!"

Melina felt the strong arms of the guards grab and usher her from the room, as Master Grol laughed heartily.

***

The Chipmunks and Chipettes stood on the balcony looking at the sky, the Tetrad almost about to occur.

"You guys ready and know the plan?" Alvin asked, while Simon adjusted the telescope.

"I guess I'm ready for what we're gonna do, but I'm not ready for what's about to happen..." Theodore said in a low voice. "How long is it gonna last, Simon?"

"Well, Theodore - eclipses of this kind can last either a few minutes or several hours. It depends on the angle of the sun and the moon. Of course, complete eclipses only last a minute, if that, but partial eclipses can last for several hours. Judging by the position of the moon right now, we should be seeing the full eclipse in the next 5 minutes. So whatever you guys have to do, you'd better do it now. Though I still don't know why you're suggesting Theodore and Eleanor go with you, Alvin."

"There's a method to my madness." Alvin said wiggling his eyebrows.

"Whatever." Simon noted tersely. "Maybe I should..."

"I bought snacks for you guys for the big event. They were selling them downstairs." Dave handed each of them some snack bars, looking up into the sky where the other adults, teens, and some kids around the Chipmunks' ages were gathered.

"Thanks, Dave." The Chipmunks and Chipettes said in unison.

"Um, Dave, I'm gonna go for a short bathroom break. Could you take pictures of the eclipse if it happens while we're gone?"

"Well, even if I took a picture of the actual eclipse, Alvin, it wouldn't show up on the camera, but I can take pictures of it before and after for you."

"Great!" Alvin started walking quickly from the balcony, as Dave started to take pictures of the moon, which was partially covered, with only a rim of silver showing. Dave seemed to like the over look of the city from the balcony as well, so he started taking pictures.

"You've got the walkie talkie, Simon?"

"Yeah. We'll call you if we see anything happen from this side, and you'd better tell us if anything happens down there."

"Trust me, Simon, you guys will be the first to know. Well, um...second technically."

Alvin, Theodore, and Eleanor slipped through the crowd and inched past the guards to head towards the East Wing of the museum. The three made their way downstairs into the central hall, where barely anyone stood other than those attending the snack stand, or the guards on rotation at the entrances to the wing. Alvin saw an opportunity to slip into the East Wing when a couple started to verbally argue with the manager of the food stand, and the guard went to quell the scuffle. They slipped by undetected, as the brief shouting match called the attention of the other guards, who rushed past them without noting their presence.

"That's what I would call a 'lucky break'." Alvin said. "Now where's that statue, Eleanor?"

"It's this way, follow me. It's...kinda big though..."

When they entered the single room where the statue was held, both Theodore and Alvin looked upward at the statue in awe.

"Wow...were the statues in the Hanti world this big, Alvin?"

"I don't know. We saw them from far away, so I think the real ones could have been this big too. How are _we_ supposed to tear this down?"

"I don't think that's a good idea." Eleanor said. "Not right away, anyway. If this really is the bridge between their world and ours, we should wait until the red moon appears and opens the way. Because Anilie might be there, and so might Miss Melina."

"Okay, that's a good idea, but it still doesn't tell us what we should do when they get here."

When the eyes of the statue started to glow and a loud, bellowing growl emerged from the stony lips of the gargoyle, Theodore swallowed audibly.

"I think they're here..."

***

"That's the signal...they definitely saw something if Alvin isn't talking through the speaker." Simon noted as he saw the walkie talkie's light pulse three times. The moon had just passed in the full eclipse and started to turn crimson at a steady pace, like a brush swerving over a pallid canvas. There was a chorus of "oohs and ahhs" from the crowd around them.

"But nothing's happening here...at least from what I can see."

"Let's hope it doesn't, Jeanette. If the Hanti are coming, we need to get down there to help them." Brittany added, and the three of them eased through the crowd that stared in awe of the reddening moon

Dave continued to take pictures of the moon for some time before lowering the lens. He'd seen Simon, Brittany, and Jeanette looking through the telescope one moment, but the next, he noticed that they were gone.

"I guess they must have went down for more snacks. Well, whenever they're ready, there will be enough pictures to save as memoirs for it. I wonder where Alvin and the others are..." His expression turned into a frown as he considered that Alvin, Theodore and Eleanor hadn't been there to witness the eclipse.

"I'd better go check on them and make sure they're all right."

But first, Dave had the daunting task of trying to ease by the spectators - and on the collective balcony, it was a task that made him exhale with some annoyance.

***

Alvin, Theodore and Eleanor managed to climb and hide behind a part of the gargoyle statue, and looked downward as a golden portal opened into the room, light radiating to the golden walls and tiled floors of the area. Several of the Hanti emerged, carrying glass orbs in one hand - some their left, others their right. The Hanti stood to attention, facing each other in parallel lines, while Master Grol walked between them with his familiar snarled grin. An orb was in his hands as well Two Hanti soldiers held a woman back by her bound arms, struggling to get free.

"That's - That's Melina!" Eleanor said in subdued alarm.

Alvin strained his eyes to see a familiar form floating in Master Grol's orb.

"And the girl in that orb is Anilie! I think there are spirits held captive in all of those orbs they're carrying."

"The Ilreita?" Eleanor asked.

"Definitely. So not all the spirits who were captured last night were free - they must have been held in those orbs. But what does Miss Melina have to do with all this?"

"My friends!" Master Grol's voice boomed through the room at that moment, reducing the room to a still silence that, if either of the Chipmunks had spoken, it would have been a pin drop streaking through the room.

"I welcome you to our new home - to the lands and skies, to the planets and space beyond with which we've been denied for centuries. And the vengeance that we've since sought against the Ilreita is now to be appeased. So join me, and raise your orbs - as we capture the souls of this night - the crimson night of the Hanti!"

"Melina's...an Ilreita?!" Alvin said, almost forgetting to silence his voice. But cheers erupted in the room, drowning out his statement effectively. Theodore looked between Alvin and Eleanor with fear and confusion.

"What do we do now? We've gotta help them somehow!"

"There has to be some way we can break this statue." Eleanor mused. "Wait, Alvin, if we can push it to where it falls to the ground, it should be old enough that it cracks and can keep them from going back!"

"Great idea, Eleanor!"

"But Alvin...That's a really long way down from where we are...it's too dangerous."

"I don't think we have much of a choice." Alvin's voice went low as he saw the Hanti suddenly grow quiet at the sound of a door opening quickly...As Simon, Jeanette, and Brittany ran into the room full of Hanti soldiers in their line of sight.

***

Simon nervously laughed and looked around at the Hanti soldiers, who seemed to growl at their entrance.

"Ahaha, I think we just entered the wrong room; we'll be leaving in two shakes."

"Yeah, he said it. We'll be leaving you gentlemen to your conquest of the world, souls or whatever."

"_Brittany_..!" Simon scolded.

"Oh, oops."

"_Silence_! You're the same intruders that invaded our prison yestereve. But no matter. You'll be a suitable lot to try our newfound powers on. Your souls will make a great use to us conquering the mortals." Master Grol's voice went from a bitter to an amused growl as he spoke the latter words.

Simon, Jeanette and Brittany gasped as the group of Hanti started to advance toward them, their orbs raised.

"Young ones, you must run!" Melina called out.

"Guys, we have to push this thing over now, dangerous or not!" Alvin said pushing forward against the frame of the statue as hard as they could.

The gargoyle statue was weaker than any of them thought as it fell over when they pushed at the same time. Alvin, Theodore, and Eleanor fell safely atop three Hanti soldiers, causing them to drop and break the orbs they were carrying. The distraction was all Melina needed to wrestle free from the two that held her back.

The broken orbs allowed the spirits inside them to wrestle free, and since they were no longer in a world where their magic was bound, as it was in the Hanti realm, they used their magic to free their companions, surprising all of the Hanti, including Master Grol who nearly used his orb against the spirits, but found that the orb broke with a swift wave of magic, and Anilie stuck out a tongue at him before flying away.

"No! This can't be...!"

The Ilreita spirits circled the Hanti, cornering them collectively, while the freed Melina joined them.

"Come, ancestors of yore! All shall vanish who disrupt the balance of our ages yet again!" Like the spokes of a wheel, energy radiated from the spirits' and Melina's hands, focused on Master Grol and his minions, as they vanished in the heart of the light, disappearing.

"We came so close...and yet again...!"

"Sir...I knew it was a bad idea to bother with those children...."

Master Grol's and Pell's voice vanished with the light, until the figures were no more.

"All right!" Alvin shouted, and the Chipmunks and Chipettes were greeted with handshakes and the dances of the Ilreita ghosts.

"You all did so well! Melina is very, very proud." Melina hugged the Chipettes and Chipmunks collectively.

"It kinda happened so fast...so, I guess we were...really lucky. Thanks you guys; we couldn't have done it without you." Jeanette said meekly.

"So, let me get this straight - you're a part of the Ilreita? How did you..." Simon inquired.

"Yes, as you suspect, Melina is one of the few survivors, and the only one who knew of the events that would pass for tonight. Melina knew you all would be the ones to do it, because Melina has her third eye." She winked at them, then turned to the spirits that hovered and stood in the room at attention, bowing to each of the Chipmunks. "All of these spirits are those who once belonged to our tribe, and if we had not bound the Hanti once again...well...It would have been a danger to all mortality. My magic only comes more potent, as you saw, during the light of the red moon. But with your help, the Hanti will no longer bother us. They have no other world to go back to - so they're gone for good." Her smile faded slightly after the latter note. "But...Melina believes it's time for these spirits to rest - they're all in need of it."

Anilie hugged the lady ghost who knew her tightly a distance away from where Melina spoke. But she turned to Alvin and the others with a sad expression, recognizing the validity of Melina's words.

"I guess...that means you have to go Anilie, huh?" Theodore said sadly.

She nodded.

"Who's the other ghost with you Anilie? Your mom?" Eleanor asked.

Anilie's sad expression turned to one where she started to laugh uncontrollably, though no sound came from her mouth. The lady ghost bopped Anilie lightly on the head with a fist, causing the girl ghost to stop laughing and rub her head, while having an apologetic expression.

"Judging from that reaction, I would say that's more like her older sister." Simon confirmed.

"But this can't be goodbye _forever_...could it?" Alvin asked sadly. "You know...you're a really cool friend, Anilie."

"Yeah, I didn't get a chance to really know you that well." Brittany admitted. "And you did help us out a lot."

Anilie blushed at the recognition, but shook her head as if to take the flustered feeling out of her head, and gestured in a series of motions.

"Anilie says that she will never be gone from any of you, that while she can't walk the mortal world much after this night, she will exist in the days before another red moon. This is true, as our power is reborn close to such nights." Melina explained, her expression with a small smile. "I can tell you it is not a goodbye forever." Anilie nodded in agreement.

"So...I guess it's just goodbye until the next red moon, huh?"

Anilie hugged Alvin and Brittany at the same time in response. Both of them were shocked, but when they looked at each other, they tried not to look upset. Much to Simon's shock and chagrin, she hugged Simon individually, then hugged Jeanette, Theodore and Eleanor before rejoining her sister.

As the spirits started to fade from the room one by one, The Chipmunks and Chipettes waved goodbyes to the groups of spirits that had helped them that night, with Anilie and her sister being the last to go.

"I'm...really gonna miss them, though."

"Me, too, Theodore. Me too." Alvin agreed.

"What is this? What happened to my display room?!" One of the mangers, who heard the commotion from the fallen statue burst into the room and ran to the statue, past Melina, the Chipmunks and Chipettes - to yell in melancholy. "Why?! Why does this always happen?!"

"Kids! Are you alright?!" Dave entered the room and they all ran to him in a hurry. Melina followed them, with not much of a word in edgewise.

"_Seville_, how many times have I told you to keep your kids out of my valuable display rooms?! Especially unattended?! This is the 3rd time..."

"I don't know what happened here, but you can't blame them for this, sir..."

"It wasn't their fault." Melina agreed.

"Oh! I don't care! Everyone out, out, _out_! Let me grieve in peace...this is the 5th priceless artefact I've found that's been ruined! And all by meddling kids...!"

Dave, Melina, and The Chipmunks and Chipettes made well to get out of the room as quick as possible, though Alvin saw Melina wink at him as they left the museum.

***

Miss Miller had picked up the Chipettes that night in her usual sedan while Dave opted to drive home with the boys. Miss Miller wondered what had happened, but realized from Dave's expression that she'd be better off hearing the story later. Brittany, Eleanor, and Jeanette all said their goodbyes to The Chipmunks before leaving - tired, but glad that it was over. Somehow, they were even satisfied with how the evening ended with snacks as they waited for Miss Miller before she drove them home.

"Well, the only thing I can say is that I'm glad you boys are all right, but you three have a lot of explaining to do. Until you can tell me the truth, I don't want to hear a word out of you." Dave groaned on the drive home, all while thinking about how he was going to pay back the money for the damaged gargoyle statue, said to have been many centuries old.

"But Dave...it's not what you think..."

"Simon, I mean it."

"Miss Melina was such a nice person. You even saw that too, didn't you Dave? She really was telling the truth!"

"Yes, Theodore, she was very nice. I didn't get a chance to talk to her much, but she did stick up for you boys. But what she said was just so...unbelievable - spirits? Ghosts? Nice or not, it's just a farfetched story. Anyway, I mean it, not another word or I'll..."

"Does this mean we can't go back to the museum for a while?"

"_ALVIN_!"

Alvin winced, but as the three chipmunks looked at each other, they were glad that the whole situation had resolved itself. Dave would probably forgive them eventually, but they were trying to tell him that Melina had mentioned the statue itself was worthless without its set, so they wouldn't really owe anything to the museum if they did their research.

As they watched the skyline from the car window, they saw several shooting stars in the sky along the light of the red moon, which slowly turned back to it's regular milky color. The spirits of the Ilreita were finally free to roam among the stars. And somewhere was a girl who smiled at them, while holding her sisters's hand as their spirits brightened the clear sky.

For a moment, they all felt that fortune had smiled on them.

**The End**


	13. Final Notes and Songs

_**Author's Note:**__ The following Chapter contains the full lyrics of the songs I penned for this story. They're totally created and owned by me (whether that would be a good or a bad thing, I'll let you decide. ^^) They're also posted on my DeviantArt account - minus "Signs" (which is actually a different handle than I have here)._

_I've been a poet for more than 12 years, and I've written songs for about that long as well, though by measure of the word, I'm not (and definitely by no means) a professional singer - I just love to write and make melodies in my head from time to time. I hope you find something in them to enjoy, even if you have to come up with your own melodies to match them._

"**Song to Fly"**

_Verse 1:_

Stuck in a corner tryin' to figure why

The words won't come out

Screen's burning on my eye

Makes me wanna shout

Rather be in another place

Just strumming my guitar on the run

You think I'm trying to save face

But I'm just having fun

In the place where we are now

We can't speak the words

Try to reach you, someway, somehow

Songs soaring like the birds.

_  
Bridge:_

Tryin' to find somewhere to be

Other than this cage

That's why I want you to see me

Lighting up the stage!

_  
Chorus:_

I will go on, and set the day

Playin' my own way-

I feel the fire lighting up my heart

Playin' what I wanna say

Don't you go on, tellin' me not to try

I know that I can get by

Cause there's nothing tearin' me apart

That's why it's my song - my song to fly.

_  
Verse 2:_

Twenty four hours turns to seventy two

Waiting in this box

Seems much longer since I heard from you

Are we really on the rocks?

Hard to tell you when I'm flyin' solo

Strikes my soul with the blues

But I find that I don't feel so low

When I'm revin' up my tunes.

Music takes me away in the fantasy

Soaring through the clouds

And from there, I imagine you seeing me

In front of the screaming crowds!

_  
Bridge:_

Tryin' to find somewhere to be

Other than in this cage

That's why I want you to see me

Lighting up the stage!

_  
Chorus:_

I will go on, and set the day

Playin' my own way -

I feel the fire lighting up my heart

Playin' what I wanna say!

Don't you go on, tellin' me not to try

I know that I can get by

Cause there's nothing tearin' me apart

That's why it's my song - my song to fly.

_  
Verse 3:_

I don't wanna be anywhere else,

but it tears me apart from you.

I can't play this game for life

If it's just between us two.

_  
Bridge:_

Tryin' to find somewhere to be

Other than in this cage

That's why I want you to see me

Lighting up the stage!

_  
Chorus:_

I will go on, and set the day

Playin' my own way -

I feel the fire lighting up my heart

Playin' what I wanna say!

Don't you go on, tellin' me not to try

I know that I can get by

Cause there's nothing tearin' me apart

That's why it's my song - my song to fly.

"**Signs"**

_Verse set 1:_

I never saw the reason, or played a game for two

Maybe your smile's the only thing I saw in you,

Are you the person I knew, or an eclipse of illusion?

Dealing this awkward hand, while playing with delusion.

You're telling me that it's not the same,

But I don't buy it, I don't play the same game.

_  
Chorus:_

I see all the signs that are telling me no

And you need time for your heart to grow, yeah

When I call you out, you say there's nothing that you can do.

I'm not staying, boy we're through - I'm through with you.

_  
Verse 2:_

Boy, you bewitch me all the time

I'm the rhythm in your broken rhyme.

It's the same deal, no matter how you're feelin'

You play a joker's hand - you send me reelin'.

You think I watch the world, hanging by a thread bare

But I don't call it, I see what's really there.

_  
Chorus:_

I see all the signs that are telling me no

And you need time for your heart to grow, yeah

When I call you out, you say there's nothing that you can do.

I'm not staying, boy we're through - I'm through with you.

_  
Verse 3:_

You change things to go your way, but I don't fit

The poisoned apple that I've already bit.

You flow through me, hit me like a shockwave

Next minute, I know I can't be saved.

You think I'm crazy to read it on a tarot card,

But believe me boy, I'm not taking leaving that hard.

_  
End Chorus_

I see all the signs that are telling me no

And you need time for your heart to grow, yeah

When I call you out, you say that life's no clover

I'm not staying, boy we're through - and now it's over.

"**Fortune Smiles"**

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you

When Fortune smiles, there's no gettin' through

_  
Verse set 1:_

Half past midnight, I'm undercover

Sounds echoing through my room.

Don't know why, but know there's another

Try to hide, but I know it's coming soon.

When I look 'round, in a different place

Can we leave the light on, just a little longer?

Cold and dark, my heart starts to race

See her face, and wish I were a little stronger.

_  
Chorus:_

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you

When Fortune smiles, there's no gettin' through

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you

_  
Verse set 2:_

In the nightlight, think I see a shadow

Doesn't matter, 'cause I know how to run

Creep beside me, just by the window

Run so far, hope I'll soon see the sun

Watch and wait, reflections of the mask

Empty now, dark eyes take a glance

Then I see strangers from the past

Better stand now if we'll stand a chance.

_  
Chorus:_

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you

When Fortune smiles, there's no gettin' through

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you.

_  
Verse set 3:_

I know that it seems a little scary

We can laugh our way through

Even when things lose a little clarity,

I'll still find my way back to you.

Fortune's on my side, turn the tables now

Sleep in peace, as they ride the night away.

We'll stand together and pull her out

Passing eyes greet the brand new day.

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you

Feel her embrace 'cause her time is due

When Fortune smiles, she's watchin' you

When tables turn, Fortune will pull you through.

"**Fact in Fiction"**

_  
Verse set 1_

"Why does it always feel like something's wrong?

Tell me when something better's gonna come along.

Trust me it's a fact, it's not like I'm much of a scaredy cat

Just don't know when something's at my back...

Try to understand the way I feel -

Tell the difference between what's fake and real.

Is the world a sphere that sat or was it really one time flat?

(Come on already, history's already proven that!)

_  
Chorus 1:_

Where can I find the fact in fiction?

It's not a matter of what's now or tradition.

The truth's spinnin' round my head,

I just want to wake up in my bed

And pretend like I wasn't here.

_  
Verse set 2_

Why do we have to see what's beyond that door?

It's not like we don't know what we're looking for.

Might be a beast with teeth, looking for something to eat,

And I wanna be on the next block down the street!

Who is that man I'm seeing through?

Not that I mind, but there's more than a few.

Some of them look too cold, and others look real old...

(I had no idea that he was this bold!)

_  
Chorus 2:_

Where can I find the fact in fiction?

Everywhere I turn, there's a new expedition.

Discovering keys on the lam

But I'm sitting quiet like a clam

Please, can you make the truth real clear?

As I'm looking down this big, old hall

I want you to look inside your crystal ball

See if my future's looking bright...

Lady Luck, please be kind

Please tell me what we'll find,

There's no telling what we'll see tonight...

_  
Chorus 3:_

Where can I find the fact in fiction?

If I'm lucky, I'll end up in my kitchen

Something warm and maybe with meat...

(Do you always think of something to eat?!)

I'm always hungry when I'm feeling fear...

_  
Chorus 4:_

Where can I find the fact in fiction?

Something's gotta ease this tension.

How will I ever understand?

Guess all I'll do is lend a hand

And hope that danger isn't too near.

_  
Chorus 1:_

Where can I find the fact in fiction?

It's not a matter of what's now or tradition.

The truth's spinnin' round my head,

I just want to wake up in my bed

And pretend like I wasn't here.

_**  
Author's Note Part Deux:**__ A little about "Alvin's Ghost" for those of you interested in hearing "the story behind the story."_

_It started as an idea back in early 2007 when I allowed myself to write in multiple veins while working on a novel (which I'm still in the process of finishing - figure that one out ^^). I don't usually get writer's block because I do a lot of freewriting, and this was one of the products of one of my freewriting ventures. I actually didn't start writing the story until the summer of that year - I had the plan and outlines for it completely drafted - and I rewrote parts of the last three chapters for flow and content issues, and found myself strained to come up with Chapter names, but it was all finally finished this year. I should note that the mythos surrounding the Hanti and the Ilreita was completely fiction - and part of my way of weaving it through the story._

_One thing you might not have noticed is that the chapter names for each of the stories featured here are actually song titles or lyrics from songs. Some of them were directly linked to the ones that I featured above, but others are actually songs that I listened to while penning the chapters. Here they are, in the order of the chapters they appear:_

_**Chapter 1: Fortunes **_

_(title inspired by the song "Fortunes" by The Primroses/Jason Rose)_

_**Chapter 2: Fact in Fiction (original song)**_

_**Chapter 3: Noise **_

_(inspired by the song "Noise" by Beat Happening)_

_**Chapter 4: Deja Vu**_

_(I know people are going to see this and think of Beyonce's song, but it was actually inspired by the song "Deja Vu" by Randall Shreve)_

_**Chapter 5: Strange Things**_

_(inspired by the song "Strange Things" by Randy Newman - it's from the Toy Story soundtrack ^^)_

_**Chapter 6: Sixth Sense**_

_(inspired by the song "Sixth Sense" by Donna Lewis. Lyrically it's quite dark, but in terms of musical tone/instrumentation - I tend to think of this as Anilie's theme song.)_

_**Chapter 7: Ghost in my Room**_

_(inspired by the song "Ghost in my Room" by Group Therapy)_

_**Chapter 8: Signs (original song)**_

_**Chapter 9: Run, Run, Run **_

_(inspired by the song "Run, Run, Run" by The Who)_

_**Chapter 10: Everybody Wants to Rule the World**_

_(inspired by the song "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Tears for Fears)_

_**Chapter 11: Passion Colors Everything **_

_(inspired by the song "Passion Colors Everything" by Poets of the Fall)_

_**Chapter 12: Fortune Smiles (original song)**_

_You can find all of these songs, except those designated as original songs or exceptions, on Itunes if you're curious about how they sound. At least last I checked. I penned four songs originally for this story, with an alternate version of "Signs" that could count as a fifth. I may or may not replace "Signs" with its amended version. The one I included here was the first draft of the story and it was the only one of the songs that I wasn't quite satisfied with. If I do, I'll update this page._

_I figured this was as good of a story to share as anything else. It's one of the stories I loved writing, but never had the chance to share it until now._

_My thanks again to all of you whom have read and commented on the story collectively - I really, really appreciate it. All feedback - comments, questions, and constructive critique - are definitely things I appreciate wholeheartedly._

_~Twinrose84_


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